The Devil's stone
by FireEmblemLover39
Summary: Dante has grown used to danger, even gone as far as to like it. However, when people from his mother's past come to his door, Dante must weigh out the new piece that Hogwarts gives him with the life he feels he will inevitably go back into. School can effect anyone, and a certain pair of twins may go farther apart then they already are. Summary is prone to change.
1. Mission 1

**The Devil's Stone**

 **Mission 1: _Enter a New World_**

"Wooohoooohooooo" A white haired child clad in brown pants and a black shirt cheered loudly. Usually children cheered for sports or parties, but not this one. No, as he cheered, he was firing off seemingly infinite rounds from his newly acquired hand guns: Ebony and Ivory. The most surprising part was he was using a demon as a skateboard and spinning freely as he did so. Soon jumping off the demon, the boy twisted in midair to avoid demonic scythes piercing his flesh, sure he could have shrugged them off at this point, but he didn't feel like finding new clothes at the moment. Swiftly turning that same maneuver into rapid spins, the boy rained bullets down on the demons that had been waiting beneath him.

"C'mon ya wimps." He taunted as he landed, causing the remaining demons to charge him. The boy leaned back to avoid one attack and quickly aimed one gun behind him and the other right in a demon's face to his left, letting loose rapid fire in the next instant. Quickly back flipping, the boy casually gave one final shot to his attackers.

"That was one helluva party!" The boy exclaimed happily as he landed behind his would be killers. Glancing back at the massacre, the boy's smile dimmed as he saw a familiar body. That woman had known what he was, had accepted him, even made the guns he had used seconds before. The demons killed her because the boy, Dante, had allowed himself to get close. A mistake that wouldn't be repeated. Renewing his smile, Dante promised he wouldn't get attached again. He wouldn't kill any humans, for his mother's sake, but from here on out, they were their own problem. He wouldn't give a damn. Casually walking away, Dante twirled his handguns before hiding them under his shirt. Maybe he should get a coat. It would need to be red of course.

Arriving at the small apartment he'd been staying in for the past week, Dante packed all of his things, but none of the woman's. The guns would be his memento from her. And a reminder. As he was putting his sword, Rebellion, in the guitar case he took to hiding it in, Dante sensed another halfbreed. All half breads could tell when they were near one of their own, but not the species the other was. Dante was no exception. Finishing his packing, a very light sack of the bare necessities and his beloved photo, Dante went to great this new 'friend'.

"What the hell do you want?" Dante asked as he swung open the door. Crossing his arms, Dante remained unfazed by this man's enormous height. Half-giant then. This would be fun if he proved hostile.

"Ar' yeh Tony Redgrave by chance?" The man asked after a second of stunned silence. Tony Redgrave. It was a persona Dante had adopted to throw demons off his tracks. They relied heavily on names after all.

"That's me." He spoke nonchalantly.

"Well, this'll make thin's easier. Mind if I come in?" He gestured to the apartment Dante had just cleaned of his belongings.

"This isn't my apartment anymore." The half-giant gained a sad yet knowing look.

"Well, can' let the muggles 'ere us. Do ya know any place we can talk?" He asked, trying too hard to be casual. Dante looked around at the empty alley, having come out the back door.

"Oh, thats righ'. Sorry 'bout that. Got something 'ere for you." The man said as he reached in his moleskin overcoat. After withdrawing a few unanimous objects, the man finally pulled out a letter. Dante observed it for a half a second, studying the magic that incased it. Certainly not demonic. It was this that convinced Dante to have a look at it.

'Mr. T. Redgrave'

Didn't seem to know just who he was.

'We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.' (Skip boring letters that are all the same.)

Dante just studied the letter for a minute, trying (and failing) to hold in his laughter.

"They honestly expect me to wear a pointed hat?" He asked before completely losing control of said laughter. The half-giant next to him chuckled a little bit too.

"Yeh really don't look the type do yeh?" He asked before falling into the same state Dante was in. After a few minutes and a lot of laughter, they decided to discuss the matter further.

"So, they want me in a wizarding school. I find it hard to believe someone like you would just be a mailman." Dante finally said.

"Tha's righ'. I'm Reubeus Hagrid, Keeper of games and grounds at Hogwarts." Said person spoke with pride at the title. Dante was silent for a second.

"So they let people like us in, huh? Coulda had that sooner." Dante said casually. Hagrid gave a sad smile behind his mustache.

"Yeah. People like us, Dumbledore tries to help our kind the best he can." He said, apparently recalling some personal experience. Dante privately wondered if he would be accepted if they knew what his other half was. After all, what culture didn't think all demons were evil?

"Well, it sounds like it could be interesting. And as my type isn't the friendliest I suppose I should be as prepared as I can. I'll go." Dante spoke more to himself before saying his decision.

"All righ' . If yeh need a place to stay, I'll let you stay with me if yeh want. We'll need ta get yer supplies anyway." Hagrid cheerfully offered. Dante suspected he was glad he could help a fellow hybrid.

"So how are we going? I doubt I could go that far with my air trick." Dante brought up the only issue he could see.

"We fly of course. Its in England after all." Dante rose an eyebrow at the distance then just shrugged it off. He always did like to explore.

* * *

"Couldn't we go any faster?" Dante asked excitedly. They had flown on a flying motorcycle and, much to Hagrid's horror, Dante had got out of his seat and rode on the back the whole way.

"What if yeh fell off? You coulda been lost at sea!" Hargrid cried in fear as they entered London. Dante quickly picked out which places were magical and which weren't thus practically being the one to lead Hagrid.

"That won't happen. I've gone at higher speeds on less steady things." Dante said cockily as he pointed at himself for emphasis. Hagrid chuckled slightly at Dante's attitude.

"Well, 'ere we are. The Leaky Cauldron." Hagrid spoke proudly before ushering Dante in. The smell of alchahaul and various other things nearly made Dante gag. It wasn't what he was accustomed to. After getting over that, Dante noticed Hagrid appeared to be a well known regular at the pub as everyone was giving him a cheerful greeting.

"Good evening Hagrid. The usual?" The barkeeper, who Dante privately compared to a walnut, asked cheerfully. In fact, every one was too cheerful, did something good happen?

"Sorry Tom, Dumbledore gave me some more Hogwarts business to sort out." Hagrid politely refused the offer as he gestured toward Dante, who was still trying to block out the smell as he observed.

"Looks like he's not used to pubs. Better get him outside Hagrid." Tom said amiably.

"Looks like someone's popular." Dante commented as they went out the back door. Hagrid blushed slightly as he denied the praise and busied himself with tapping a few bricks. Dante didn't so much as twitch when the alley revealed itself, but he did silently admit it was impressive. Though he noted all the animals quieted down when he entered. A few people looked at the pet store in confusion.

"Well, I knew yeh had a powerful aura, but I didn' think it would be that strong." Hagrid commented as they passed the previously loud stores.

"It happens." Dante waved it off, "So, where to? I don't exactly have money you know." He said. Hagrid laughed at that.

"We'll get somthin' out of the school vault, in gringotts." He explained as he pointed to said building. A few minutes and a lot of suspicious stares (goblins) later, Dante and Hagrid were at a retailer.

"We need to enter the Hogwarts vault." Hagrid stated pleasantly despite the glare he was getting. The goblin then turned to Dante and widened its eyes.

"That won't be necessary. Do you wish to access your father's or your mother's vault my Lord." The goblin asked an only slightly surprised Dante with a bow of its head.

"So pops had a vault here, huh? I'll use my mother's." He said as he completely ignored all the flabbergasted stares he was collecting, including Hagrid's.

"Do you have your key?" Dante raised an eyebrow at this piece of information.

"No. Any other options?"

"Yes. Please put three drops of blood on this parchment. New keys will be made for you while the old ones are destroyed." The goblin stated with respect.

"Easier said than done." Dante mumbled as he took the knife offered. Only two drops of blood made it from the cut he made before it healed. The goblin gaped.

"Vey well, we can use what is on the knife." A few seconds later and Dante was given both a gold and a platinum key.

"Blimey! I didn't know they made platinum!" Hagrid exclaimed in shock. Most wizards and goblins alike were still gaping at the scene.

"Well, what now?" Dante asked in a lull in activity. As if this some sort of cue, everyone resumed there work while sneaking glances at Dante.

"Griphook! Take them to vault 392." The goblin at the counter shouted. Hagrid once again paused in shock.

"Well, you coming?" Dante asked after a moment of just staring at him.

"Yer a Black?!" Hagrid asked as they went into the cave. Dante dismissed it again with a 'Thats my mother's maiden name.'

If Dante had to describe the ride down in a word, that word would undoubtedly be 'Sweet'. Throughout the whole ride, Dante was practically bouncing around in excitement. Even when they went under the waterfall, he still kept up his energy, and only got even more excited when he noticed the goblin wasn't steering. The goblin was watching Dante with an amused fascination while Hagrid had his eyes squeezed tightly shut and was obviously going to be sick. If you asked Dante, it ended too soon.

"All right! Let's go!" Dante shouted in excitement. Hagrid chose that moment to empty his stomach.

" _What a wimp_. What happens now?" Dante asked a smirking Griphook after muttering the first part.

"Key please."

A few minutes and another amazing ride later, Dante was ready to start shopping for school supplies while Hagrid was beginning to wonder just what he had brought onto the school.

 **You probably noticed I was a bit vague on the descriptions, but all of you reading this probably already know what everything looks like. Also, I did absolutely no research what so ever on the banking system. On another note, don't miss the next mission: The Black Lineage.**


	2. Mission 2

**Mission 2: The Black Lineage**

Dante, being Dante, was running around with no care whatsover of where he was supposed to be. Thus, it wasn't a suprise when he was found in the middle of a suspicious alley at a place called Burgan and Burkes without any of the supplies he needed. Not even a wand. At the moment, he was playing with a hand that was trying to tear his own off. Nodding slightly in amusement, Dante moved on to the next item he could find. The store owner was watching his every move, likely thinking he was the next generations dark wizard. Dante paid it no mind, and kept up his 'games' even when a platinum blonde haired man entered to order some things that were probably not legal. The kid that was following him, however, caught Dante's interest. Something about the way he was holding himself reminded him of Vergil. Dante kept his eyes on the kid for a moment, mentally categorizing all the similarities and differences this guy had with his twin. He shortly came to the conclusion that it wasn't his problem, but could prove entertaining. Thus, he struck up a conversation.

"Hey there. Not very parental to bring a kid here is it?" Dante asked as the kid moved away to look at the merchandise. The boy jumped, apparently having not noticed Dante beforehand.

"I don't associate myself with mudbloods." He sniffed before turning back around. Dante gave a mock hurt look.

"Mudblood? And here I thought the Blacks were a pureblood family." He practically cooed, having been told about his blood status by Griphook. The boy's eyes widened comically.

"Your a Black?" He asked, not quite able to contain his suprise.

"Yep. Mother's side." Dante feigned another hurt look, "But if I'm a mudblood I guess I should get out of here." He said as he started to leave at a diliberate pace.

"Wait!" Just as predicted, the boy behind him shouted, catching his father's attention. Dante stopped and turned around with a smirk.

"What is it Draco?" His father drawled. The now named Draco gestured to Dante.

"He claims to be a Black father." He said hurriedly. The man raised a blonde brow.

"Well, if you truly are a Black, who is your parent?" He asked. It was Dante's turn to quirk a brow.

"Why should I tell you that?"

"My apologies, it seems I was so excited I forgot to introduce myself. Lucias Malfoy. My wife is also a Black." He said silkily.

"So your family, huh? Tony Redgrave. My mother was Eva." He said nonchalantly. If this person was family, maybe he could tell some stories about her past. Both Malfoy's eyes widened.

"Eva? So your the heir to the Black family?" Lucias asked after a moment.

"Lucias, I've got your order. I suggest you leave before someone finds you here." The store manager said as he came back to the front.

"Thank you Borgin, even though I ordered this to be here three days ago." Lucias muttered as he picked up his package and steered the children away. They soon made it out of Knocturn Alley and were once again in the cheery shopping district.

"So Tony, you said 'was'. What happened to her?" Lucias asked curiously as Dante started to go away from them to finally buy some of his equipment, Hagrid having realized it would be fruitless to try and keep up with him. Dante stopped in his tracks, hearing echoes of the past that were NOT welcome.

"She's gone." He said after a few minutes to force the memories down. Lucias frowned as Draco asked the next question.

"Then is your father here?" Dante couldn't help it, he gave a sardonic laugh that chilled the two Malfoys before replying.

"Father? I don't have a father." At that, Draco gave a horrified look and subtly moved closer to his own father, who unconciously wrapped a hand around him.

"Then, who are you with?" Lucias asked quietly. Dante shrugged.

"No one. My, ah, escort couldn't keep up, so I left him behind." Lucias's eyes hardened.

"Well, Draco's already got his things, but I'm sure Narcissa wouldn't mind us helping out her relative. Don't you agree, Draco." He asked smoothly.

"Certainly Father." Dante got the imprssion the younger Malfoy was trying to assure himself that _he_ did have a father. He smiled again.

"All right, if you can keep up." With that, he began easily pushing through the people, leaving the Malfoys to scramble after him. A few minutes later, they caught up with him at the book store as he was finishing his purchase. Dante smirked at them as he took in there frantic states. It wouldn't be noticeable if you didn't know they had it, but it was still amusing. However, the thought of finding out more about his mother prevented him from leaving them behind again.

"Cool, you didn't lose sight of me. Guess I'll stick around." He said cheerfully. Lucias seemed to realize something then.

"Tony, if it is as you claim, then you should probably claim your inheritence after you finish shopping. Dante waved him off.

"I'll get to it."

The Malfoys soon learned that they were only begining to see Dante's energy as he kept almost leaving them behind without meaning to. More than once, they lost sight of the carefree child before seeing him standing with an impatient smirk. When being fitted for his robes, Dante could not stay still, his every instinct telling him that the needle was an attack on him, that is after 30 minutes of trying to convince him to go in (and bribing him with extra clothes, Dante went through with getting a red coat). At the arethemacy, as soon as the door opened Dante turned around without losing any speed while trying to keep from gagging, taking another hour to get him to go in there alone. A short break at Florences Ice Cream Shop revealed an immense liking for strawberry sundaes. While the Malfoys rested, Dante was happily eating the best strawberry sundae he ever tasted. Lucias wondered how a child could be so active, and was thankfull Draco wasn't like that. It was almost night time by the time they got to Olivanders, which proved to be an... interesting experience.

"I've never seen such a destructive child." Excaimed an absolutley beaming Olivander as he pulled out what seemed to be the thousanth wand, as well as the last one in the shop. Lucias had long since sent a patronous telling Narcissa not to worry about them.

"Oak, dragon heartsring, highly powerful." He said. When Dante took the wand, he immidiately felt his demon energy react to it in a positive way, which was proven when red sparks danced along the wand.

"...I think we'll have to go get your inheritence tomarrow." An exhausted Lucias mumbled. Dante just grinned.

Lucias soon aparated them to the Malfoy Manor. Dante took a look around while thinking. He prefered the air trick, it was smoother. Too bad he could only use that to go a couple of inches, he'd have to work on that if appartion was the only other option.

"I'll go inform Narcissa of your stay Tony. Go to bed Draco." Lucias said after a minute of watching Dante. Draco, too tired to do otherwise, complied with a mumbled 'good night'. Being left alone in the foyer, Dante took a real look around, and would have to admit, he was impressed. Though he prefered things a little more... interesting, it was clear the Malfoys had enough money to throw around if all the silver and emerald was any indicator. He also prefered red. A loud crack and a blur of red later, Dante was aiming his gun at some weird creature. While his mind supplied the word 'demon' Dante knew it was pobably officially labeled a 'magical creature', thus, he lowered his gun. Though he made a point to not put it away. The creature looked strangely, apparently not recognizing a gun when he saw one.

"Hello sir. My name is Dobby the house elf. May Dobby take your coat for you?" It asked politely. Yet it also seemed scared. House elf, was it the wizarding equivalent of a demonic servant?

"Nope. I like this." He said nonchalantly. Just then, the sound of footseps indicated a new arrival. Dante turned to see who he could only assume was Narcissa. His mothers relative.

"Are you really Eva's son?" She asked hesitantly as she inched closer. Dante nodded as he subtely put Ivory away. Suddenly the woman embraced Dante in a hug, all the while crying in joy. Dante, not knowing what to do, just stood there tense. His mother hadn't been the type for contact and Vergil wasn't much better, not that Dante himself was either. After a few moments, Narcissa released Dante from the hug and ordered Dobby to get them some tea. So he was a servant. Within a second, Dante and Narcissa were sitting comfortably on the soft couches in the manor. Dante gave an appraising look as he debated what he wanted to ask first.

"Tony, was it? Could you tell me what happened to my cousin?" She asked after a few minutes of debate. Dante gave her a considering look.

"Demons." He spoke after his own few minutes of debate. Narcissa dropped her tea cup with a loud gasp. At the sound of the cup shattering, Lucias and Dobby both appeared in an instant but went ignored as an extremely pale Narcissa tried to process what she had heard.

"Narcissa, whats wrong?" Asked a panicked Lucias, "What did you say to her?!" He then rounded on Dante, who remained silent.

"Demons... demons killed Eva?" Narcissa barely managed to whisper those treacherous words. No one except Dobby noticed Dante's fist clench in pure rage at the memory. Lucias paled when the words sunk in.

"B-But demons... h-how? Demons never leave any survivors! How did you, a child, manage what so many failed to do?" Lucias asked after a moment of pure silence, only disrupted by the fire in the hearth. Ordinarily, Dante would have laughed at there reactions, but this time he didn't say anything as the memories surfaced. His mother's screams, Vergil's and his own desperate attack, the attack that-

"Tony!" Lucias exclaimed, finally noticing his shaking. Dante was glad for the interruption.

"I'm not ready to talk about it." He forced out as best he could. "See ya." With that, he proceeded to leave the manor. He was already long gone by the time they recovered enough to persue him.

A couple weeks later saw Dante at King's Cross station, searching out any signs of magic. He had gone to gringotts the day after meeting the Malfoys and claimed his inheritence. It turned out that Vergil had gone there and said he didn't need such a thing when offered. So now Dante had the Black estate as his uncle was in prison. He'd also gotten Sparda's belongings, which he refused to acknowledge and wondered why Vergil didn't claim it. If Dante was honest with himself, a part of him hoped to see his brother at Hogwarts, but going on what the goblins had said, that wasn't likely. Currently, he was looking for the platform. Obviously, it was hidden from muggles, but where? Hmm, 9 and 3 quarters, probably between nine and ten. Approaching that area, Dante easily senced highly concentrated magic. Not very well hidden, he was dissappointed. Not caring if he was seen or not, Dante casually walked through the wall with his trunk over his shoulder.

 _Getting on board was easy enough, now just to wait out the ride._ He thought as he closed his eyes. It was going to be a long trip, he could feel it.

"Hello. Is this -"

"Seat taken? Everywhere else-"

"is full so we'd appreciate it if-"

"We could stow our stuff here." A pair of identical twins asked in a _very_ familiar fashion. Dante and his own identical twin used to do that very same thing, it hurt a little to see, but was also a pleasant experience.

"It's open." He said with a wave of his hand.

"Thanks. We won't-"

"Stay here long."

"After all-"

"We've got to make sure-"

"Our little brother doesn't-"

"Make a fool oh imself in frot of-"

"Harry Potter!" The twins ended in unision. Dante perked up. He'd read about Harry Potter when he was searching through for potential enemies. He wasn't exactly a bookworm like Vergil, but he did like to keep informed.

"Harry Potter, huh? Wonder what this 'savior' is like. I'll tag along." He said with a clap of his hands. The twins grinned at each other, sensing a fellow prankster. Dante wondered suddenly how they would react about his demonic title of 'trickster'.

"All right I'm Fred-"

"I thought I was Fred."

"How could you be Fred when I'm Fred?" Dante put a hand to his head in mock confusion.

"Twins named Fred? How can this be?" He asked dramatcally. The twins laughed as he went along with them. One twin soon put an arm around Dante.

"Can we keep him George? " He asked in mock wonder.

"Aha! So your Fred and your George!" Dante suddenly exclaimed as he pointed to each one. The twins gasped.

"Fred! Have we given out our names?"

"How have we been out done?"

"You must join us sir!" They finished at the same time with identical dramatic bows. Dante laughed again.

"I'll think about it. Don't you have a brother to stop?" He asked with a smile. Fred and George shared a look.

"Thats right!"

"Come along then." With that, they assured Dante out of the compartment. It wan't long before they came to the back of the train to a seemingly random compartment, which was promptly thrown open by Fred.

"Hello 'ickle Ronnikens" George greeted cheerily. Dante noticed the ginger in the compartment and guessed that was their brother. Which left...

"So your Harry Potter. I was expecting someone tanner." Dante said as his gaze landed on said person, who seemed to be trying to flatten his hair.

"I didn't think about that, did you Fred?"

"Not once. We've really picked up a good one, huh George?" Harry was looking between the two so fast Dante wondered if it was possible for a human to get whiplash as the twins continued there banter. He had to look away. It was starting to hurt to see them do that. It was times like this that he really missed his brother.

"Not another one! Who are you?" The younger ginger asked in exasperation. Harry seemed to deem that more interesting and the twins seemed to realize that they didn't even know that as all four of them turned to look at Dante.

"Tony Redgrave." He said by way of introduction. The twins grinned widely.

"Well Tony, we should go."

"Yeah, Lee Jordan seems to have brought a tairantuala on the train."

"Cool. Lets go check it out!" With a swish of his red coat, Dante turned to follow the twins down the train.

* * *

Harry was left with Ron as company, but he seemed to be trying to figure something out. Harry decided to wait and see if he did, it may be a wizard thing.

"Oh thats right!" Harry jumped at the sudden exclamation.

"Er, what is it?" He asked hesitantly. Ron gave him a funny look before remembering he had only just been introduced to the wizarding world.

"Tony. Thats the name of the kid who recently surfaced and claimed the Black estate." The ginger said in excited terror, "The blocke seems nice enough if Fred and George accept him, but the Blacks are some of the worst blood purists there are."

"Blood purists?" The boy who lived asked carefully.

"Yeah. A lot of purebloods get it into there heads that muggleborns don't belong in the wizarding world. The Blacks are a notorious example, most of them followed you-know-who. Thats actually what the war was about, blood purity. But the Black heiress dissappeared from the wizarding world a while back, leaving it all to her little brother, who was the most loyal death eater. He was caught though, so now it all went to Tony, who no one knew existed until a couple of weeks ago when the Malfoys announced it. They say he survived a demon attack!" Ron whispered the last bit conspiratorilly.

"I take it not many people do that?" Harry asked confusedly. Ron nodded.

"Demons are even worse then You-know-who. Magic doesn't affect them in the least. A sadistic lot too, they rarely leave anything left of their victims. Even unspeakables are afraid to go near them, and its there job to evacutate areas where they've been sighted. in fact, the only ones that study them are the Blacks." Ron cringed at the mere thought of them, Harry felt like doing the same thing, if they were worse than Voldemort, who people were afraid to even say the name of, then they must be terrible. After a few minutes to let that sink in, Harry and Ron started talking about other things.

 **Done. Hmm, Dante seems to be meeting a lot of the cast. And he's already getting famous just for appearing! Too bad he's pushing them all away. Will the trio be able to help him out of this? Next mission: House Rivalries.**


	3. Mission 3

**Mission 3: Houe Rivalries**

 **So my mind is only allowing me to work on this right now...**

 **Also, Dante might seem paranoid in this, but this is before he got overpowered.**

The damp air and dark night caused a lot of children to shake and stumble, except for Dante. His main concern was how he would explain Rebellion if it was found. Said person decided not to worry about it and was watching in amusement as it all happened. Heh, he was already here, might as well catch them if they fell.

"Four to a boat!" Hagrid called after giving Dante a look, which he just shrugged off. Maybe the fact that he refused to take off his red coat. He didn't even consider it was for ditching him in diagon alley. Taking the last boat available, one shared with Harry and Ron, Dante casually looked into the lake. He'd read about some interesting creatures in there, not that he was going to show off that knowledge like the girl nearby was doing. In a way, it kind of reminded him of Vergil, though he would state it as a fact only when asked rather than her know it all way. He was honestly a little dissappointed however, when he didn't see the giant squid, it probably didn't want to deal with the half devil.

"You'll get yer first site of Hogwarts in a sec." Dante looked up and was genuinely speechless at what he saw. It was massive! Even Harry and Ron, who had been sneaking glances at him, and doing a poor job, couldn't keep their eyes away from it. The girl had been shut up, and the crying boy next to her seemed to forget what had been bothering him, as well. In short, it was impressive.

After finding a toad and walking a little ways that seemed to exhaust most the students, they approached the castle and were greeted by a strict looking witch. Dante's instincts told him she was not one to cross.

"Thank you Hagrid, I'll take them from here." She spoke in a polite yet stern way, "Form a line and follow me." Dante didn't bother to listent to that order. It seemed the other students were too excited and nervous to as well, as they failed to make a line in favor of trying to either be at the front or the back. The talking pictures suprised more than a few people, Dante included. He had thought only demons could achieve something to that end. Remembering a time one had possessed a picture and tried to kill him when he got too close, Dante kept his distance from them as he kept a cautious hand over his still hidden guns. It wasn't until they arrived at a pair of giant doors that even a cerberus could fit through that Dante allowed himself to relax as he heard the chatter of students. The teacher, whom he had identified as McGonagall, gave him a slight smile that he was sure that others hadn't seen before announcing that the sorting was to take place shortly and telling them to 'smartin themselves up', all the while eyeing certain students and Dante's own coat. She soon entered the hall.

After a moment of chatter, Dante's sences went off causing him to tense up. Quickly, yet subtley, looking around, Dante was the first to notice the ghosts gliding through the wall. Shit, he didn't know how to deal with ghosts. He assured himself he would be fine, as long as they didn't-

"AHHH!" See him. Damn, now all the ghosts had noticed the students. Giving a short lived glare to the one who had screamed, Dante prepared to defend himself however possible. A short conversation later (with Dante taunting the ghosts despite knowing he couldn't hurt them) and McGonagall came back, shooing the ghosts off. She gave the tense Dante a shortlived glance, confirming that she knew at least something of his past. Probably the encounter he had mentioned to the Malfoys. Speaking of, he noticed Draco was giving him an appraising look as well. Shit, he shouldn't have mentioned that. He only did because of the stupor the memories caused and the fact she was related to his mother.

"The sorting ceremony will now begin." The proffessor announced as Dante calmed himself down. There really was no point in getting worked up over it. He could deal with humans, and the ghosts didn't seem to have any interest in, or ability to, hurting anyone.

The great hall, Dante would admit, was magical. Floating candles and an enchanted ceiling, nice. As he and the rest of the students made their way to the front, Dante took a look at the staff. Hmm, boring, boring, another hybrid, boring, boring, strict, old, suspicious (He smelt the garlic from his distance), another suspicious, and boring. This could be fun.

"When I call your name, you are to be sorted into your houses. Abbot, Hannah!"

"Hufflepuff!"

"Black Vergil!" Dante did a double take at the name then, even as the whipers started, his twin strode purposefully up to the hat. His twin. Vergil. Dante's smirked as he saw his twin. So Vergil had decided to come after all. This could be fun. Though Dante was suprised that he didn't see Yamato.

"Slytherin!" As Vergil stepped down, he seemed to scan the crowd until his eyes rested on Dante. He gave a cold look before moving toward his new house. Dante mentally debated on what could have convinced him to part with his sword, even if only temperarily. Dante himself, had only parted with Rebellion secure in the knowledge that he could summon it with a flick of his wrist, and that he had his guns. He wasn't the trickster for nothing. As he thought this, he tuned out of the sorting until his 'name' was called, snapping him back to attention.

"Redgrave, Tony!" No one payed much attention to his name in the excitement over Harry's, but those who did gave confused looks, identical to what Vergil's name had recieved from the entire hall. With the ease only a prankster could have, Dante ignored all the looks while keeping alert at the same time as he approached the hat.

'Interesting. Another Black that breaks tradition. You've been through so much for one so young...jut like your brother.' Dante nearly grimaced at the reminder, but instead smirked. He had figured out rather quickly that it would go through his mind.

'Yeah, and there are going to be a lot more parties in my life too.' He mentally replied even as he grew excited at the prospect of the 'parties'. The hat gave a small chuckle.

'I see a LOT of Griffindore quallities in you, but you also have some ambition I see. To avenge your mother? Slytherin could hone that, but there is a certain spark. Yes, you certainly harbor the power to accomplish your goals without their help. Not that they held a candle against the Griffindore in you anyway. There really is no competition here, I see. May your heart heal in...'

"Griffindore!" Dante smiled, now he had an excuse for fighting Vergil! The Weasley twins gestured them over to their seat as he moved to find one at the red and gold table. He could _really_ live here. As the last student, Zabini Blaze, was sorted into Slytherin, the headmaster announced the beggining of the feast. He heard Harry chuckle, but paid it no mind as he searched for pizza.

"He's mad isn't he?" Harry asked, apparently not noticing the food somehow. Dante gave a snort.

"The old man is fine in my book. As long as he doesn't ruin my parties." He said before anyone else could answer. The redhead he had interrupted gave him a look and was about to say something before Fred and George cut him off.

"We difinitely picked up a keeper."

"I agree. So what 'parties' do you have in mind?" They asked. Dante gave an easy smile.

"You'll find out soon enough." He said as his gaze wandered over to the Slytherin table. More specifically, his brother. Vergil met his gaze and, apparently reading it, gave a cold stare.

"You won't have any parties that aren't allowed." The yet unidentified redhead scowled. Dante noticed a badge with a 'P' on it. He ignored him, almost.

"A friend of yours?" He asked the twins as he jabbed a thumb at the scowling boy. Fred and George gave mock ashamed looks.

"Yes. Percy the perfect prefect."

"Can't have any fun around our dear brother." They mumbled as if ashamed. Percy's scowl deepened.

"Knock it off you two." The prefect snapped. Harry decided to speak up again before a fight broke out.

"So, whats a prefect?" He asked in genuine curiosity. Percy's face seemed to brighten at that.

"A prefect is someone who-"

"I get it. A hall monitor." Dante cut him off flippantly. Now if only he could find- AHA! He then grabbed some pizza, before promptly making a face. Yuck! Olives! He put it on his plate anyway. Percy seemed insulted at what he said while Fred, George, and Lee Jordan were snickering. Harry, for his part, was keeping his laughter under control, while the Granger girl seemed mortified that he would say something like that.

"Erm, Your Tony right? Tony Redgrave?" Asked the boy who had lost his toad, nervously. Dante saw a spark of courage in him for that alone, all he needed was a push. Not that Dante would give it.

"Thats right." He said as he inspected his pizza. A dark skinned boy blinked at that.

"Then your the black heir. Who was that other guy then? Vergil, I think his name was." Dante smirked.

"My twin. Honestly, I didn't excpect to find my dear brother here." He said in a way that made it clear he would've been just fine if he didn't. No one seemed quite sure how to respond to that. Even Ron stopped stuffing his face to stare at him as he casually ate his pizza, as if he had just mentioned the weather rather than his twin. For some reason, the redheads all looked at eachother. It was Harry that broke the silence.

"Um, say, who's that talking to Quirrel?" He asked as he looked around for a subject to switch to. Percy seemed to brake out of his daze as he followed Harry's line of sight.

"Oh, thats Proffessor Snape, head of Slytherin house." He said, just as eager to change the subject as Harry. Hmm, so a suspicious head of house. Head of Vergil's house too, this could be problematic. Ah well, not like he cared for the house cup. (Fred and George had told him about it on the train.) From that point, the conversation became light as people tried to forget about what Dante had said. Many things were discussed, such as quiditch, classes, specialties, you name it. But when family came up things became akward as people snuck glances at Dante while it was being said. Soon enough, desserts dissappeared and the headmaster got up for a few more annoucments.

- _skippingspeachthateveryoneknows-_

As the speach ended, Dante could only think of two things. One, he was visiting the third floor corrider, despite the laughter from people who thought it to be a joke, he realized the man thought people would definitley die if they went in there. Two, he was meeting his brother in either the corrider or the forest for there parties. When they were dismissed, Dante followed the rest of his house to their dorms, or he would have if McGonnagall hadn't called him away.

"How the hell did I get in trouble bfore school even started?" He asked as they walked up a flight of stairs. It was clear they were going to the headmasters office. McGonnagall eyed his red coat, but chose to let it slide for the time being. It'd blend right in with her Griffindors anyway.

"Your not Mr. Redgrave. We just have a few... issues to clear up." Dante just shook his head, even as Snape joined him with Vergil in tow. After several flights of stairs, they arrived at a stone gargoyle. With a muttered 'lemon drops', a scowl from Snape, a quirked brow from Vergil, and a snort from Dante, they entered the headmasters office. Dante took in the various nicknacks laying around and the two other teachers in the room as he plopped down in one of the sofas. Vergil remained standing as the proffessors took up various posisitions in the room. Vergil began the conversation.

"As...pleased as I am to see my brother again, I must ask why we are here." The proffessors seemed shocked by his tone of voice, but answered any way.

"Of course. As I have no doubt you noticed, one of our staff is also a hybrid." Here, he gestured to the short wizard who looked happy to see them, "As such, it would be rather stupid of us to ignore any special needs you may have. Would you like to tell us what they are?" Dumbledore said pleasantly. Dante smirked, and even Vergil seemed amused at this.

"You sure? We can get rather...restless." Dante spoke up with a knowing tone. Vergil nodded his agreement.

"We will mainly need a place to spar." He added. The proffessors seemed to be trying to figure out what they were as the twins shared a look only readable to them. Flitwick, the other hybrid, smiled suddenly as he decided it didin't matter.

"Well, I'm sure we could find a place, any specific details you'll need in it? Obstacles or space?" Dante smirked again.

"The harder it makes our spars the better."

"I agree. Though as we get violent, it will also be prudent to have privacy and a way to clean up before students see us." His twin voiced. McGonagall then added her two cents.

"Don't think that aside from this, we will treat you any different from any other student here. You are still very much the same level as them." Snape nodded.

"I agree. I do not want any interferences in my class, even if they stem from these issues." He drawled.

"Severus, they may not always be able to help it. You should lighten up on them some. Though I do agree that they should over all be treated the same, you should still take their needs into account." The last witch in the room said sternly as McGonogall gave a nod of agreement. Flitwick seemed to just be happy they were here. Dante honestly wondered how he could be so...calm. Was discrimination really not an issue here? Vergil seemed to be having simiar thoughts as he saw the short hybrid.

"I agree, Pomona." The strict seeming witch responded.

After a little more conversation, and details about the twins were reveiled, the teachers decided to send them to bed with the assurance they would find a place to spar.

Dante made sure to memorize the path as he was escorted to the common room. McGonagall, for her part, was realizing just how much energy the boy had as he turned the stairs into a game and gave no indication that he heard her scolding as he slid down the railing. She was positive she wasn't the first one to wonder what had come to the school as she finally got him to the common room.

She quickly returned to the headmasters office.

 _Those boys, something is terribly wrong! Its as if they weren't happy to see each other at all!_ She thought as she made a detour, seeing as the stairs had begun acting up as if to make up for how well they'd been behaving to this point. Perhaps it was because of whatever Tony (or was it Dante?) was. That was another thing, the boy had called himself one thing, but his twin another. Was he using an alias? Did his species hate him? The poor boys. The way they had spoke about sparing violently didn't help her concience at all either. Severus, whom she met up with at the gargoyle, seemed to have similar conclusions.

"Just what happened to them?" She muttered under her breath. She'd have to bring up her concerns with Albus. Maybe Filius and Hagrid could help too. It didn't matter if Black was a Slytherin, she wouldn't rest until those two calmed down.

Dante, for his part, opened the dormitory door and promptly closed it. There was no way he could sleep with so many people around and _snoring_ of all things! His instincts just wouldn't let it happen. What if one of them decided to be hostile?! Then again, what if one of them decided to go through his things? Dante grimaced as he tried to decide what to do. He could call Kreacher, but he didn't like the idea of someone bound to him, something he might be vulnerable to for all he knew. On the other hand, from what he read house elves seemed to like being sevants. And he couldn't risk them finding Rebellion, or worse, stealing his picture of his mother. He had his amulet with him at all times, so that wasn't an issue. What the hell.

"Kreacher." He said simply. With a crack, the batty old houself appeared behind him. Dante already had Ebony half aimed before he got control of his instincts.

"What does young master want?" The elf sneered as it recognized the muggle contraption. Dante smirked.

"Nothing much. Just find a way to make sure no one gets a hold of my things as some of them are rather...dark." He said with a smile as he thought of some of the more demonic things he had brought. The elf perked up at the mention of 'dark'.

"Kreacher would be happy to master. Kreacher will also make Grimmauld Place livable to young master." The elf chirped happily, doing a complete one eighty on personallity before popping out to carry orders. Thus, he spent his night in the common room, smirking when he thought that Vergil was probably having the same problem.


	4. Mssion 4

**Mission 4: Learn the Ways of Magic**

 **Just edited it as I noticed a couple errors when going through again. Hey, just because I'm writing this story doesn't mean I'm not reading it.**

Contrary to popular belief, Dante was a _very_ light sleeper. You tend to be when your very existence is seen as an inexcusable sin by demon kind. Thus, it wasn't a suprise when he awoke to the faintest of rustles of clothing the next morning. Cracking an eye open revieled something he half expected: An over excited student trying to sneak out so as to _not_ waken him. His sleepy mind almost registered it as a demon before he remembered where he was. Hogwarts, the place he was most likely to learn about his mother's past. A quick glance at the window revieled it to be early morning, the sun was barely up.

A demon would be attacking him right about now anywhere else, how could he have slept in? Sure when he was stronger he _might_ have that luxury, but as he was now that was a death sentence. He mentally scoffed, not even the first day and he was already going soft. Pretending he was still asleep, he watched the bushy haired girl leave. He guessed she was going to the great hall. Waiting a few more minutes, Dante went to the dorm room to get his clothes while he was somewhat alone, if being surrounded by sleeping kids counted as such. Maybe he should explore some before classes started, make a mental map of the castle. He got the fealing that would be a _very_ useful skill for any half demon. It didn't take long for him to find the great hall, which was semi-quiet in the early hour.

The first thing he noticed was Vergil. Who was approaching him.

"Hello, brother." The older twin greeted upon approach. Dante smiled, they may have become distant, but they were still brothers. Even if they each wouldn't care if they never saw the other again.

"Hello to you too. Have they figured anything out yet?" He asked as they unconciously made there way to a table, Dante noting off-handedly that Vergil had pointedly gone _away_ from the Slytherin one. They wound up at Ravenclaw, Vergil couldn't stand the Slytherins' 'pettiness' or the Griffindores' 'foolishness'. Apparently, he'd only tolerate it from Dante himself.

"Proffessor Snape approched me earlier. We've got permission to use the Forbidden Forest. On that note, when will you need to spar?" He asked with a small shrug. Dante thought for a minute.

"Well, I was able to blow off some steam just before King's Cross, so I should be good for a little while. The stairs help with that too. You?" Dante said with a small laugh. Some Griffindores and Slytherins then noticed they weren't with them.

"I was...held up. I suppose we should 'play' sometime next week. Inform me if you get restless." Vergil responded.

"Next week then. How about the rest of our scheduals?" Dante asked as he pulled out his. A blonde Slytherin approached their spot then, Vergil quirking an amused brow when he noticed Dante's display of tact. Dante got the fealing he was going to be teased later.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Vergil asked in a bored tone as he too withdrew his timetable. The blonde, apparently Malfoy, (Where had he heard that before?) scowled slightly. Neither twin so much as twitched.

"I was just wondering what you are doing with a _Griffindore_ at the _Ravenclaw_ table." The arrogant blonde asked as emphasided the house names. Dante smirked as he thought of a hundred comebacks, but this was Vergil's 'battle' so to speak and he knew his brother would be irritated if he used one.

"Is it a crime to speak with your long lost twin at a fairly neutral house? I saw no such thing in the rulebook." Vergil asked in a detached manner. Dante found in amusement that it was an edited version of one of his comebacks. Malfoy hesitated in shock, where had Dante seen him before?

"You weren't this uptight in diagon alley." Malfoy said with narrowed eyes, earning a loud 'aha' from Dante.

"You know him brother?" Vergil asked. Dante nodded.

"Yeah. Met him when I got my supplies. Sorry Draco, but you were talking to the wrong twin." Dante said semi enthusiastically. Malfoy scowled for a moment. Dante saw some debate in his eyes for a brief moment.

"I see. I guess it isn't a suprise that you're a Griffindore. Though you aren't unbearable to stick around. I'll help you if you need anything." And with that, he left. Dante smirked slightly at his reaction. Vergil just sighed and muttered something about how they could be mistaken. Dante's smirk widened, as they proceeded to compare their scheduals. Neither one cared about the many stares they were recieving.

Dante's first class was...interesting. Proffessor Sprout, one of the ones that had been in Dumbledore's office the night before, was amiable. Dante became curious when she showed no favortism whatsoever despite his hybrid status and being the Hufflepuff head of house. The most she did was smile at Harry when his name was called. The lesson was simply to identify two types of herbs. A task in which Dante was only rivaled by Neville, who was slightly faster.

The next class was Charms, taught by Proffessor Flitwick, much to Dante's suprise. He proved exciteable as he squealed happily and toppled over in excitement, too which Hermione quickly helped him up. When Dante's name came around, he gave a really large grin. He then had them move water with their wands, too which Dante excelled in when he thought of a way to use it on the offencive. Naturally, he showed off by sending it around the room and narrowly, yet expertly, avoiding anyone before sending it around himself then back into the cup before twirling his wand and putting it away. Teacher and students alike cheered enthusiastically. Hermione was sort of huffing and smiling at the same time, while Harry and Ron were grinning ear to ear while joining the other students in chearing. He recieved ten points for understanding the concept of magic.

Transfiguration however, proved a little tougher yet more exciting. When the teacher, Proffessor Mcgonagal and their head of house, turned her desk into a pig, Dante's instincts told him how to do it, but he wouldn't be able to explain it. They were tasked with turning a matchstick into a neadle. Dante turned it into a knife.

"Mr. Redgrave..." McGonnagal trailed off, apparently unsure of what to say as she studied the throwing knife on the table. It was a beautiful thing, to those that knew anything about blades. It was sharp enought to cut through some devil's outer shell and expose their weak spot, the blade itself was rather short, just a few inches long, with a silver handle and, somehow, glowing with holy power. Dante had absolutely no idea how he did it. Honestly, he had been mentally going over the most effective strategy to kill a Sin Sythe. Many students were also watching with incredulous looks. Hermione looked kind of put out, and pale at the same time.

"Ah, that. My parents _did_ always say I had an affinity for pointy things." He said somewhat smugly. McGonnagal shook her head in exhasperation.

"Should've known. Eva was infamous around here for making sharp objects." She said fondly. Dante perked up and drunk in every word. He made a mental note to tell Vergil so they could ask more about her later.

At lunch, both twins choosing to eat with their house, Griffindores flocked around Dante asking about tips for charms, and a few of them, Fred and George included, asked about the knife as well. Glancing at the Slytherin table, Dante smirked upon noticing Vergil in the same predicament. However, unlike Dante, Vergil was able to intimidate them with a glare. Dante himself could escape if he wanted to, but he was actually finding amusement in their crazy theories. He put a stop to it when one of said theories came scarily close to the truth, by ducking under someone who was attempting to shake him and stealthily airtricking out of the crowd. He still got exhausted with a couple inches though, so he quietly slipped away afterwards. If there was one thing he and his brother still had in common, it was that neither could resist showing off.

The most anyone noticed was a red blur as Dante snuck off to potions.

Dante was already sitting ready for potions when Vergil joined him. Not many were able to read him, but Dante was able to pick up that he was in a bad mood as he kept his eyes on the cauldron rather than looking at Dante when he tried to start a conversation. That was practically the only sign. Dante quickly got his interest however, when he mentioned their mother.

"You had transfiguration yet?" He asked casually. Vergil kept his eyes on his cauldron as he replied.

"No. Why." Dante smirked.

"Well, it seems McGonnagal was fond of mom." He grinned when Vergil's head snapped up, clear interest in his features. Thus, Dante told him what he had learned. Vergil gave a Dante like snort when he finished.

"Figures. She had no problems shooting father, and if I recall she pulled a gun on you once. There were also all those times she stabbed him...and us...we had a crazy mom.*" Vergil muttered with a shudder.

"Sword happy and trigger happy. Doesn't mean I would've traded her for anything though." Dante said, even as he remembered her stabbing him in the stomach when he was three. Dante had been persistent in getting into her weapons closet, but he learned his lesson.

It wasn't long before the rest of the students came in and the twins had to shut up. As usual, both houses gave them strange looks. Ron particularly was looking at him though as Hermione was being more subtle and Harry seemed to understand that he was getting away from the crowd.

"There will be no foolish wand waving or sily incantations in this class." Snape drawled as he walked in. Dante got a bad vibe from him. He just knew something would happen. Glancing beside him, he saw Vergil's eyes were narrowed in suspicion. He seemed to have a bad feeling as well. Not a minute later, they knew why. Snape quickly started harassing Harry. The twins shared a look. Well, he was in a posistion to do so, might as well.

"You do realize that one was a third year question, right?" Dante asked as Snape asked Harry the difference between monkswood and wolfsbane. Snape quickly gave Dante a dark glare, for a human, but it was enough to frighten everyone but him and Vergil into absolute silence. Sparda, or even his mother, was _far_ worse. Vergil quirked a brow as he seemed to decide to add onto what Dante had said.

"I understand cunning, but that was just underhanded. It's no wonder our house has such a reputation." He said cooly as he leveled Snape with what would come to be labeled as his infamous 'what are you going to do now' stare. Snape turned an interesting color. Somewhere between green and red, as he seemed to struggle to come up with a comeback. Typical Vergil and his sense of honor. Though the Griffindores were giving him confused looks, likely wondering if he really was a Slytherin or something. The Slytherins themselves were considering his words, especially one Draco Malfoy. By the looks of it, he was somewhere between disbelief and wonder.

"Just make the potion with the ingredients on the board." Snape finally hissed as he tapped said board to make the instructions appear. Apparently he had forgotten Dante's part in it, or was actually thinking of what Vergil had said, one or the other. Either way, Dante wasn't going to remind him. As the class went on, it became apparent that his actions toward Harry wern't his only dishonorable ones as he swept the class and critisized every little thing about the Griffindores while the Slytherins got free reign. A quirked brow from Vergil temperarily stopped that, but he soon started harassing Harry over Nevill's mistake, (Dante had barely held back a laugh when it blew up).

"Jeeze. What will it take to make you get the point?" Dante said loudly when it started. Vergil nodded his agreement.

"If my head of house keeps being so dishonorable, I may request a transfer to Ravenclaw." He lamented in his version, (Kept a straight face. Dante doubted anyone else realized he was). Snape once more had nothing to say. It became clear that there was going to be a war between the Sparda twins and the potions master when a few Gryffindors snickered. Snape then began to wonder what they had brought in.

* * *

It had now been a week since the start of term, and Dante and Vergil had agreed for a weekly visit to the forest, though unfortuneatley they had to have Hagrid as supervision. Dante, luckily, was able to talk him into just letting Fang watch them so that they could spar all out after an incident which nearly had them figured out, and this way, they could use their swords! Dante had learned that Vergil had done an undetectable expansion charm on his pocket and kept Yamato there. He vowed he would master it, but for the time being, he had Kreacher sneak Rebellion to him.

Both twins had also made it onto Snape's hitlist, prioritized above anything else. Needless to say, Snape soon figured out his methods don't work on them, and they didn't tolerate his favortism. Vergil, because of his honor, and Dante because he had something of a hero complex. As long as he was in a posisition to help that is. Unfortuneatley for him, the whole school had realized that by now, and whenever Snape was around, they made sure he was seen. The Griffindores didn't even care that Dante constantly lost them house points because of that, working extra hard to gain more instead.

It was after their second spar that they found themselves late for the flying lesson.

"Damn, we got carried away." Dante scolded himself as he and Vergil carefully monitered their pace to just within believeable speed.

"You got that right. The lesson should begin any second." Vergil said with a hint of frustration in his voice. Dante mentally grimaced. Not only had he barely had a chance to work on his air trick, but the paintings had proven to be gossips, so if he tried that it would just blow their cover.

"Good thing we have that note with special permission, huh?" Dante smirked as he looked at his twin, who nodded with a small smirk of his own.

"Quite." With that, it didn't take long for them to reach the field where the class took place. Everyone was already there and it seemed class was already in progress as a few people were holding there brooms. Vergil quickly showed Madam Hooch the note and she shood them to the line with instuctions on what to do. Just like the water, the brooms obeyed them instantly.

"Look at him, doesn't know how to hold a broom." Draco snickered at Harry. Vergil sighed at his housemate and cousin's pettiness. Glancing at Harry's grip, Dante decided to let it play out. After an incident with Neville ("Honestly" -Dante) they were waiting for the teacher to return when a voice rang out.

"Look at this. Longbottom must have dropped it." Draco smirked. Dante read that tone easily and just smiled at said blonde.

"Don't you ever learn Draco?" He asked as he shook his head. Harry, seeing who was behind Malfoy, snickered into his hand as he pointed it out to Ron. Soon all of Griffindore was snickering, minus Hermione.

"Whats so funny?" Draco asked as he frowned in confusion. Vergil then turned him around and proceeded to smack him with his broom, before grabbing the remembrall.

"If you are going to steal something, make sure the owner has a chance to defend it." He said to a horrorstricken Malfoy. By this point, Vergil's since of honor had become legendary in castle grounds and thus, the Griffindores treated him like one of their own. Last Dante heard, he had even gotten into the good graces of the Ravenclaws when he saved one of their precious books from an unfair fate. Dante put one of his hands in his pocket as he held his broom in the other and shifted his weight slightly.*

"Honestly Draco, remind me how we're related?" He asked in a mocking tone. Draco turned an interesting shade of scarlet. He'd long since retracted his offer of friendship from them.

As Dante made his way to the third floor (He had ditched everyone awhile ago and was now going to 'play' with the cerberus he had found on the first day, going through the trap door would make it too easy to lose track of time) he thought about how the flying lesson had went. After Madam Hooch came back, they had proceeded as she had intended, but Harry seemed to have taken a page from his book and showed off his natural talent. Vergil and he himself had come to the silent yet mutual dicision that showing off here would cause trouble for them, and thus conciously didn't. Harry didn't seem to get that memo as he had impressed the teaher enough to go to the head of house. Dante was proud. The guy could use this a lot...wait. Did he just have a caring thought? He couldn't get attatched, they would just die! Yet Flitwick and Hagrid were well enough...Dante stopped in his tracks and frowned. Being here was making him soft! With a light growl that _no_ human could achieve, Dante resumed his casual pace with his hand in his pocket, but he wasn't going to the forbidden coridor anymore. He needed to kill something.

 ***Don't misunderstand, she was a good person. I'm just having her the extremely wild and violent type in this, come on, she married a** _ **demon**_ **even if it was Sparda, how would she have met him? She also knew ordinary means wouldn't work with demonic children.**

 ***I just had to put that in there. It was just irrisistable. Every time I see it, my inner fangirl acts up. Heads up, I'm probably not going to be able to resist a jackpot moment either.**

 **One more thing, should I make this where Hogwarts influence keeps Dante and Vergil close, or should I make there relationship go like it is in cannon? Next mission: The False Duel. Make a Stand!**


	5. Mission 5

**Mission 5: The False Duel, Make a Stand!**

 _ **A false duel will force the trickster to make a choice.**_

 **Thought I would try a true Devil May Cry style intro.**

 **So far I've got five votes to keep them close and none to seperate them, the option will still be open for a couple of chapters.**

 **Chapters left: 3**

Dante frowned as he heard voices when he passed by the trophy room. Damn, he was not in the mood. It only worsened when he recognized one of the voices as Harry, the very person who put him in this mood. It seemed they were arguing about something. Oh, right. Draco had challenged them to a duel. With a light growl, Dante tried to walk past them, only for them to freeze up at the sight of him. Hermione looked around nervously and grabbed Dante's shoulder as he passed.

"Tony, do you know what that sound was?" She asked quietly. Now that Dante looked, he saw she and Neville had somehow gotten drug into Harry's mess. Taking a moment to look them over, in a way he absently knew to be the same way Vergil looked, he noticed that Neville looked like he could have a heart attack at any second from fear and even Harry looked a little scared.

"Not everyone in this school is human." He said simply. He could feel the demon in him itching for a kill. Hermione seemed to be about to ask what he meant, so he continued, "Yes they accept hybrids." _Some._ He mentally added as he thought about his own species. Hermione's face lit up, seeming to forget where she was.

"Then are you a hybrid? What are you? How many hybrids-" She was cut off by a low, annoyed growl from Dante. She scuddled back with a small yelp even as Harry took up a protective position in front of her. Dante also noticed, more sensed, Ron drawing his wand and Neville ducking behind him.

"Are you Tony, or Vergil?" Harry asked skeptically. All right, this was more what Dante was used too! He let out a soft laugh that seemed to confuse the others yet answer Harry's question at the same time.

"Ah, sorry about that. It's not easy for a hybrid to adjust to suddenly being..." Dante let himself trail off, suddenly wondering why he said that, "Forget it." He finished with a wave. Just as Ron opened his mouth, presumably to say something stupid, they heard an unwelcome voice.

"Sniff around my sweet, they may be lurking in a corner." Dante scowled, quickly realizing what was going on. Malfoy, his own cousin, had stooped so low as to set this up! Dante may not be as honorable as Vergil, but there were some things he wouldn't tolerate, and this was one of them. Hermione gave Dante a pleading look as Dante made to leave without them. Taking a moment to weigh his dicision, Dante adjusted his course and motioned for them to follow him. He led them down the center of the hall, yet far enough to be out of Filch's sight. Apparently his calm demeanor was affecting the others as he listened to their quiet footsteps. Dante soon felt like face-palming as their was a crash as a suite of armor fell down. _How_ did they pull that off when he led them down the _middle_ of the hall?

"Run!" Harry shouted. Idiot! You don't yell when your trying to hide! As the group ran, Dante hung back a little. Time to see how the 'savior' would do in the lead. Harry led them down multiple corridors until they eventually found themselves near the charms corridor. Hermione seemed to be trying an 'I told you so', but was just too exhausted. Dante just watched them panting with his hands in his pockets.

"So what was that about?" He asked far too cheerfully for the situation.

"Your Tony all right." Harry gasped out after a minute.

"Malfoy challenged Harry to a duel earlier, you were there remember? Anyway, they went and Malfoy must have tipped Filch off. I came because I had been locked out of the dormitory and Neville just followed us because he forgot the password." Hermione said all in one breath. Dante gave a considering look. They were so naive, a luxury he sometimes wished he had. Who was he kidding? He couldn't imagine such a boring life! Wait, why were they all staring at him like that? If he had to guess, he'd say they were looking at him for advice or something. Whatever.

"Take it from me, that is far from the pettiest trick in the book. You shouldn't fall for every bait you come across." He said. The other four seemed to be in shock at what he said, it was surprisingly Neville who managed to speak.

"W-what do you m-mean, Tony?" He stuttered out. Nowhere near as bad as Querill, but still annoying. Dante shook his head.

"I mean, I won't always feel like helping out. Humans aren't my problem." He sighed. Harry blinked at that.

"Er, what are you exactly then?" He asked slowly. Dante gave a flat look as Ron and Hermione seemed eager to know as well. Neville spoke up again.

"Um, actually Harry, Gran says that for a hybrid to reveal exactly what they are is a sign of immense trust. Asking them is rude, especially when you don't know them well." He said a little boldly. Dante mentally gave him points even as Hermione gasped and Harry started apologizing.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know! I won't ask again, sorry!" He said in something of a panic. Dante waved him off.

"Don't mention it. You're just a human who grew up in the muggle world. Ron on the other hand..." He trailed off with a pointed look at said boy, who looked away with a mumbled 'sorry'. Just as Hermione was about to ask another question, Peaves showed up, much to Dante's annoyance. They were sold out in three seconds flat, causing another running spree. Dante almost scowled when he saw the familiar door he had originally been going to. This was NOT the time for that! That dog had demonic blood and would attack Dante on sight! Next time he saw his cousin, he'd kill him. Hermione performed a quick 'alohamora' on the door and they all piled in.

Upon the Cerberus noticing his scent, Dante began inching away from the others. If it killed them trying to get him, then that wouldn't be any better than him killing them.

Pov. change

"I think were safe now." Harry said as he removed his ear from the wall. As he turned around to ask Tony exactly why he had been out in the first place, he froze upon noticing said person on the other side of the room with a giant, three headed dog ready to attack him!

"TONY!" He shouted, inadvertently getting the, whatever it was, attention. Now with one of that thing's heads growling at him and the other two at Tony, Harry froze, not knowing what to do.

"Harry." Ron whimpered pathetically as Neville hurriedly fiddled with the door, not caring if he was caught. Tony, apparently, did know what to do however as he jumped off the dog's heads and literally kicked the door open. Not having time to be surprised, the others all piled out. Tony proceeded to force the door shut as the dog tried to get them. Said boy then turned around cheerfully as he posed his question.

"So, are you done with your adventures today?" He asked with his arms crossed. Harry gave a numb nod as he tried to process what was going on.

"All right, get going." He said as he gestured in the direction of the common room.

"Where are you going Tony?" Harry asked as he noticed said person going the opposite way. The enigmatic student gave him a backwards wave as he continued his path. Neville tugging his shirt and whimpering prompted him to listen to his not-quite-friend's advice and leave.

Upon entering the common room and a small argument with Hermione in which she pointed out a trap door, Harry tried to figure out the enigma known as Tony Redgrave. If anything, when Harry had started becoming slightly hostile, the guy seemed to _relax_. For a minute, Harry had honestly worried that he wouldn't help them. Why had he even been out there, where did he go? And he acted like he was used to dangerous situations like that! What was going on with him? Ron apparently noticed his expression and spoke up.

"If your worried about Tony, it's normal. There are a lot of unfair laws against 'half breeds' that often prevent them from even getting a house. I'm honestly surprised he was able to get his inheritance." He said with air quotes around the word half breeds. Harry idly wondered if that was a rude thing to say.

"You mean, it's common for him to get in trouble like that?" He asked. Ron nodded sadly.

"Probably. A lot of wizards are extremely prejudiced. With him being a Black on top of being a hybrid...it probably isn't easy for him. Probably hides his status from the world. A lot of them feal ashamed of what they are because of the way they're treated you know. Mum's always talking about how she'd take one in if she met one just to help them mentally." Harry couldn't help the sadness he felt on behalf of Tony Redgrave. Just what else did the poor guy endure? What about Vergil Black? It was no wonder they thought so low of humans.

"If he's hiding what he is, we probably shouldn't tell anyone." He said.

Pov. change

Dante, at that time, made his way to the Forbidden Forest. He was still itching for a kill, and the arachne there could be quite intertaining. Not long after, he was in the Spider Hollow killing a good bit of them. His frustration, however, didn't seem to be quelling in the slightest. Did Vergil know what their cousin had done? He doubted it, if he knew, he would have stopped it the moment he learned about it.

"Damn it!" He shouted as he realized he was caring again. He needed to STOP! They would just die if he didn't! It didn't matter if they only met at school, they would talk about him and eventually demons would hear them and kill them! It wasn't the same as Hagrid or Flitwick! Sure, goblins would probably look at the latter in distaste, but they wouldn't try to kill him for existing! After a few more minutes of killing arachne and mentally ranting about anything and everything, Dante decided to turn in for the night.

The next day, Dante had calmed down enough to be in a good mood, with a plan. He simply ignored his cousin while the other three were giving him death glares from across the room, catching the older pair of twins' attention.

"Hey there Tony."

"We were wondering if-"

"You knew why Ickle Ronnikens is acting-"

"Like we put a stink bug in his-"

"Bed all over again!" They finished in unison. Dante smirked as his plan started falling into place.

"Oh, nothing really. Just a Slytherin trying to get him expelled." He said nonchalantly. Fred and George's expression noticeably darkened in what in anyone knew them as their revenge plotting face.

"Oh ho ho. We can't let that slide brother mine." George said in false joy.

"I agree George. What should we do then?" Fred added too cheerfully.

"Hmm, I wonder if it's creepy down in the dungeons." Dante said in mock thought, pretending he wasn't paying attention to them.

"We should give him trouble, we should." George grinned, apparently having put together the main Slytherin tormentor. Dante smirked as they wandered off to plan their revenge on their brother's behalf. It's not like they had to _know_ he cared. Dante eyed the three blissfully oblivious humans as they entered the great hall.

"Jackpot." Hermione seemed to hear him as she turned to him with a curious look. Dante ignored her in favor of his pizza.

When classes ended, Dante heard about what he had inadvertently caused. Apparently, Fred and George had decided to prank not just Malfoy, but the whole Slytherin dorm by putting snakes in the common room. He had no idea how they did it, but he wanted to find out. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on who you asked, he found out with a blade at his throat. Vergil was not happy, until he learned it was payback such a low trick. Even then, he vocalized his disagreement with the method.

"So you condemn such an action with an equally dishonorable one." He said with a quirked brow as he jumped back from an Ariel Rave via tree branch.

"Hey, I didn't do anything. Fed and George did it." Dante said in mock defense as he landed. He was hoping to get his Ariel Rave to go a little longer, but he couldn't seem to get enough air for that. Vergil sighed.

"I suppose I should have a 'chat' with our cousin." He muttered as he warped in front of Dante with a horizontal slash of Yamato. Dante used an air trick to get out of the way. Both twins panted for breath after the exchange. Dante grinned.

"Well, we were able to warp a couple of feet that time. Getting better." He said as he gasped for breath. Vergil nodded in agreement.

"But not enough." He said.

* * *

At dinner, Dante happily ate his usual pizza as Harry and Ron talked to Neville and Pavarti Patil. So, Hermione was crying about charms, huh? Crying... demons like him didn't have that gift, why was she ashamed of her humanity? Dante stopped for a second. He both hated and loved tears, should he help her or let her continue to prove her humanity? She didn't seem to care when she learned he was a hybrid, if anything she seemed to be excited. Maybe...there could be a way to have a friend.

Dante almost didn't realize when he left the great hall.

"Hey, I'm coming in." Was his warning before walking right into the girls' bathroom. He immediately heard crying from the farthest cubicle. So, she _was_ human, in both mind and body.

"W-what are you d-doing here Tony?" Hermione managed to choke out. Dante asked himself that same question, why _was_ he here? Oh, that's right.

"Why are you ashamed of crying?" He asked curiously. Hermione seemed to be caught off guard by the question as she went completely silent. Then she became angry.

"WHY WOULDN'T I BE ASHAMED OF CRYING?!" She yelled after a moment. Dante couldn't help but wonder what was going through her head.

"It's okay to cry. Tears are a gift only humans have." He said as he moved to lean on the wall outside her cubicle with his arms crossed. Hermione was quiet again, likely wondering why he was acting so out of character. After a moment, she cracked the door open and gave him a curious look.

"What do you mean?" She asked, sounding choked. Dante took in her puffy eyes and the tear streaks going down her face before closing his eyes in memory.

"My mother used to say that to encourage me to cry. I never could though, you should be proud of your tears." He said quietly. When he opened his eyes, Hermione was giving him a mystified look, as if she was beginning to see him in a new light.

"Tony...Did you come just to tell me that?" She asked in a meek voice. Dante gave a light shrug.

"I can't stand when humans take tears for granted like that. It's proof that you're human, I just thought you should know that." He said as he moved to get off the wall.

"Wait, does this mean...were friends?" She asked quietly, hopefully. Dante looked at her for a long moment, trying to decide that for himself, then he heard it. Giant footsteps.

Dante's head whipped to the door, which he had forgot to close behind him as his eyes narrowed in suspicion and his hand automatically went for Rebellion, only to falter when it came in contact with nothing but air. Hermione gasped as she seemed to realize something was wrong and moved to hide behind Dante. Dante glanced at her before reaching into his coat.

"Here, this thing is crazy hard to come by, so don't open it unless I can't handle this." He said as he gave her a blue bottle that had fancy designs on it and a pointed lid. Hermione accepted it with a questioning look.

"What is it?" She asked. Dante rested his hands on Ebony and Ivory as he responded.

"Holy Water. Anything impure, even a corrupt human, will suffer great damage if it's opened. Be extremely careful with it." He said as he partially unsheathed his weapons. He was fairly sure a wand wouldn't cut whatever was coming. The whole room was shaking now as Hermione caught the sound of the footsteps. Dante idly wondered if he should summon Rebellion. It was then a troll stuck it's head in. Dante grimaced, troll's weren't exactly devils, but they weren't small fry either. Hermione squeaked as she ducked under the sink to hide herself, apparently she couldn't handle real danger. As the troll came in the rest of the way, the door closed behind it. No demonic wards, if worst came to worst, he could bust the door down and drag Hermione out.

"Hey pal, don't you know this is the girls' bathroom?" He asked before unloading a rapid barrage of fire on it. The troll reared back and lashed out blindly under the assault, causing Dante to have to jump over it's club to dodge. Concentrating some magic to his feet, Dante created a platform to jump out of the way of another strike even as he felt the wind from it, before raining bullets on the troll's head and flipping midair to get out of the way of another attack.

"Phew, I heard troll's had tough skin, but damn. Looks like I might have some trouble here." He said as he inspected Ebony after landing. It was then he noticed Harry and Ron. _What the hell?!_ Caught by surprise, Dante didn't notice the club coming for him until the last second, causing him to have to roll out of the way. Taking a quick glance around to see the situation, he saw Ron and Harry had started throwing debris at the troll while Hermione seemed to be trying to hurriedly open the Holy Water.

"Don't open that!" He shouted. Hermione squeaked and quickly stopped. Dante got to his feat and quickly unleashed another load of fire on the troll's head where he deemed to be the weakest spot. Harry and Ron stopped mid throw as Dante grabbed a sharp pipe and jammed it into the troll's arm hard enough for it to drop it's club. Quickly getting an idea, Dante grabbed the club.

"Thought you might want this back!" He shouted as he quickly threw it at it's owner's face with all the force he could muster. The impact completely shattered the club and sent the troll into the wall. Dante quickly pulled Ebony and Ivory and trained them on his downed opponent in case it tried something again.

"Is it dead?" Hermione asked quietly as she inched out from her position under the sink, which happened to be the last thing in the room that was intact. Harry slowly took a step forward to get a better look at the troll but stopped as Dante gave him a look that clearly said 'stay back'.

"I don't think so, but it's definitley out." He said after a moment. Dante frowned at that and twirled Ebony and Ivory before firing a Honeycomb Shot to make sure it was down.

"What the bloody hell was that for? It was down Tony!" Ron gaped as Harry and Hermione could only stare at him in shock. Dante ignored him for the moment as he studied the enemy again.

"If a hostile is still alive, it _will_ come back. I just prevented that." He said after a moment. Just as Harry was about to reply, someone else beat him to it.

"It would seem you have some common sense after all Mr. Redgrave." Professor Snape snarled as he followed McGonnagal and Querill in. Dante hardly spared them a glance as he focused on the troll again. Snape cautiously approached it with his wand drawn.

"It looks like its one hex away from dyeing -" He was cut off by another shot from Ivory, "Scratch that, it was just killed." He finished with a raised eyebrow. McGonnagal thinned her lips before speaking.

"While I admire your care in dispatching an enemy, I would advise letting an adult handle it when they arrive in the future." She said as Dante put his guns away. A pathetic whimper from Querell briefly got Dante's attention before he turned to address McGonnagal.

"Where were the adults when my mother was killed? If that's what could have saved her-" He pointed at the cowering defense professor, "Then I don't think being here will do me any good." He said. No one seemed quite sure how to respond to that as Dante crossed his arms, giving one of Vergil's infamous stares. McGonnagal seemed to come to the decision that it would be better steer clear of those waters.

"What were you all doing in here anyway, and what are you holding Miss Granger?" She asked after an awkward silence. Hermione looked down at the Holy Water cradled in her hands.

"Tony gave it to me. He said it's called 'Holy Water'. He said to open it if he couldn't handle the troll." She said slowly. The teachers frowned.

"And where did you come across Holy Water, Mr. Redgrave?" Snape drawled. Dante honestly thought about that answer.

"...It was in my 'father's' private closet." He said after a moment.

"Your father carried Holy Water?!" Ron asked in complete shock. Dante rolled his eyes.

"Obviously. Why else would it be in his closet?" He asked in a mocking tone. Harry found himself blinking.

"Whats Holy Water?" He asked looking around.

"Mr. Potter, Holy Water is an extremely rare liquid that is known to be the only thing capable of killing demons. Aside from the rawest forms of magic, everything else is useless." McGonnagal replied. Dante snorted.

"You're almost right. I find demons generally aren't fond of pointy things." He said offhandedly.

"You speak as if you've encountered demons more than once." Snape spoke softly. Dante shrugged.

"They don't like their prey getting away. When they realized I was alive they started tracking me down." He said nonchalantly. There was another moment of silence, then.

"You should go to the dormitory, all of you. I'll take that Holy Water, Miss Granger." McGonnagal said as Dante's eyes landed on Snape's bloody robe. Bite marks. _Wait. Dormitories? Why not say I don't know stay in the great hall with the majority of the experienced witches and wizards?_ He thought as he left with the others. As they were halfway to the dormitory, Hermione seemed to lose control of her curiosity.

"How did you do that Tony?" She asked. Dante gave her a quizzical look.

"Do what?" He asked, he had done a lot back there.

"You know, jump off that red energy!" She said. Harry and Ron were poorly pretending to not be listening.

"Ah, that. My people can use the raw magic McGonnagal was talking about. Though that was the first time I've ever used it like that." He frowned at the end, trying to figure out how he did. Upon entering the common room, Dante layed on the couch, as usual, while the others went to their respective dormitories.

 **Hmm. Long chapter. Next Mission: The Trickster.**


	6. Mission 6

_Mission 6: Friends_

 _Vote chapters left 2_

 _In a prison full of screaming inmates and insanity brought on by some of the foulest creatures known to wizard kind, a lone man was unaffected. This man had scruffy hair and a sunken expression as he focused intensely on the crossword puzzle in his hands. The issue of the Prophet was a bit old, but it was the first one he was able to get his hands on in a while. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him and he fervently looked through the issue. It should be aha. There it was!_

 _This year Harry Potter 'The Boy Who Lived' will be attending his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. We can probably expect great things from our savior as he learns to consciously use his magic..._

 _The article went on to talk about trivial things that the man could honestly care less about. The main thing he felt was his pride at his godson going to Hogwarts. Then another article caught his attention._

 _'The Black Heir?'_

 _Recently, a young boy appeared from seemingly nowhere claiming to be of the Black lineage. An interview by Rita Skeeter with the main family he associated with brought to light some interesting yet tragic things._

 _Sirius Black, for that's who the man was, couldn't believe his eyes. The Black Heir? Could it be... he had a nephew? Suddenly, the sound of the screaming and the effects of the dementors presence completely disappeared as he read the interview._

 _Rita Skeeter: Mr. Malfoy, thank you for your time._

 _Lucias Malfoy: Of course. This is big news after all._

 _Ugh. Malfoy. Combined with Rita Skeeter. Great. Sirius contemplated dumping the article there, but the thought of his family kept him going._

 _Rita Skeeter: I heard you met the Black heir before he claimed his fortune. Could you tell us his name?_

 _Lucias Malfoy: Yes. His name is Tony Redgrave. He is the son of Eva Black._

 _Eva?! His beloved, not-quite-sane, big sister? She had disappeared while he was in Hogwarts! He began reading more earnestly._

 _Rita Skeeter: Eva Black? Do you by chance know the fate of the missing Black heiress?_

 _Lucias Malfoy: Unfortunately so. It would seem that she was killed by demons. Poor Narccissa was in tears when she found out._

 _Sirius couldn't handle reading anymore at the moment and set the paper aside in order to ponder whither it was just on of Skeeter's inflated articles. One thing was for sure though: He had a nephew named Tony Redgrave._

* * *

Dante kept a curious eye on those three the next day, even as he tagged along with them on their insistence. It seemed the 'ordeal' had brought them into a tight nit group that they were trying to involve _him_ in. Honestly, Dante didn't remember what it was like to be tight nit like they were trying to be. Back in the secluded cottage his family had lived in his closest friend had been Vergil, and now he rarely talked to his twin. Sure their mother had occasionally taken them to the nearby village for social interaction, but their yet uncontrolled instincts had always caused them to keep everyone else at arms length to the point where they had been nicknamed 'the ghost children'. After their mother die- left he had gone from place to place, rarely interacting with anyone and almost as rarely resting.

Even so, death had always followed him.

Being perfectly honest, he still occasionally ran into people who recognized him as one of the ghost children and avoided him because of that. How did one talk to a friend? Why was he tagging along at all when he could be getting his Holy Water back? Why was he even considering a friend? Weren't Ebony and Ivory proof that such a thing couldn't exist for him? Speaking of, why hadn't those been confiscated?

"Hey Tony." Dante snapped out of his thoughts as he looked up at the one who spoke, "I've been meaning to ask: How did you get those guns?" Harry asked in naive curiosity. For some reason, Dante felt annoyed. Didn't he realize that for someone his age to be armed like that indicated trouble?

"I just thought it'd be nice to have a couple shiny things." He said _very_ sarcastically. Harry seemed to deflate slightly as he got the hidden message. Plastering on a small smile, Harry continued.

"I'll admit, I was so shocked when I saw you with those that I froze up." Here, he shook his head slightly, "I can't believe I did that." He said. Dante noticed the way he carried himself, with some hidden pity. It angered him like nothing else. Hermione spoke up next.

"I'll admit, I was surprised too. Why weren't those confiscated though? How did you fire them so fast and not run out of ammo?" She asked curiously. Ron gave a confused expression and Dante cut him off before he could ask anything.

"Customized them myself." He drew Ebony for emphasis, "You see, I removed the magazine in favor of space so I could modify the chamber to - none of you are getting this are you?" He gestured to the mentioned parts before noticing their lost expressions. Harry shook his head quietly while Hermione admitted to not knowing much about guns to begin with and Ron looked like he didn't know where to begin to start.

"Can I have a closer look at that Tony? I bet Dudley will be jealous when I tell him about this!" Harry asked excitedly. Dante thought about it for a moment and was grateful that they seemed to forget about Hermione's first question.

"Do you know anything about gun safety?" He asked as he gave a scrutinizing look. Harry sheepishly shook his head. Dante thought for a minute before an idea formed.

"It'd probably be safer for you to try Luce and Ombra then. Those can be emptied." He said, thinking about the first set of guns he had ever made.* Harry grinned at that.

"'Luce and Ombra?' Oh I get it, like these are inscribed 'Ebony and Ivory'!" Hermione exclaimed, "But, why would you have two sets of guns?" She asked after a second. Dante put Ebony away as he looked at Hermione, her question in the bathroom echoing in his mind. He honestly wasn't sure how to interact with her anymore, the guns, sure that was something he was willing to talk to anyone about, but what if they got the wrong idea?

Dante continued to his class with minimal difficulty, before meeting Vergil. Said person was showing off in his own way as he was confronted by some of his housemates.

"Whats up?" He asked as Vergil gave some clever retort he didn't care to repeat. That method was his twin's thing. Vergil glanced over at Dante before looking back at the slytherins who were threatening him. Ha! There seemed to be five of them, two thrid years and two fifth years and a seventh year.

"We were just chatting." The older son of Sparda said. The group of Slytherins looked suddenly nervous.

"You, your the one that killed the troll! W-we, yeah, we were just talking to your brother." The seventh year said in faux bravery. Dante crossed his arms. Really? They were in trouble. Vergil quirked a brow.

"Tony, you really did that?" He asked in some unknown emotion. The growing crowd, who had just appeared, watched in anticipation. Dante smirked as he nodded his confirmation. Vergil took a moment to answer, apparently trying to reign in his emotions. Dante could feal the tension in the hall.

"Was it enjoyable? Did it take much?" Vergil asked suddenly, cracking a grin as he waited for the answer, even as the crowd gasped at the out of character reaction. Vergil seemed truly eager to hear the details. Dante's smirk turned into a wide grin as he answered.

"Hell yeah! It was even more fun then those Nobodies Mom taught us to kill five years ago!"

"Why did you take the fun for yourself?" Vergil nearly pouted, except, it was Vergil. Dante shrugged.

"You weren't there." Vergil suddenly grabbed Dante's wrist and drug him away from the crowd.

"You've got to give me the details." He muttered. Thus, after an interesting explanation and a mutter of agreement from Vergil, about Querill, Dante found himself on the receiving end of one of his twin's scrutinizing gazes. At some point, Vergil's hair had come down and he didn't bother to put it up in his interest, so he looked the carbon copy of Dante right now.

"I still say you should have let me in on it." He muttered as students started to pile in.

"Maybe next time bro." Dante replied flippantly, choosing not to move for the period. His maybe friends gave him an odd look, but otherwise left him to his own devices.

Before anyone knew it, it was the day of the first quidditch match. Dante, who had been avoiding the trio for a while now, noticed that Harry was refusing to eat. With a slight shake of his head, Dante went over and placed a piece of toast on Harry's plate.

"C'mon. I'm expecting a good match." He said. Harry jumped and turned around, as did Hermione.

"Tony!" She exclaimed with a large grin on her face. Dante crossed his arms.

"Yeah, it's me. Now hurry and eat. You'll be no use on an empty stomach." He said. This was going to be the first match he ever saw, he wanted it to be a good one. Or that's what he told himself. Harry seemed to have other ideas as he grinned and took a tentative bite of his toast.

"Thanks Tony." He said in between bites. Dante put his hands up in mock offence.

"Hey, don't thank me until you win. I've never seen a match before and I want this to be a good one." He playfully chastised, trying to convince himself as much as he was them.

As the match drew near, Dante gave some of his own last minute advise.

"Remember, your job is the snitch. The others don't matter as long as they're not trying to sabotage you. Fred and George will cover you, so trust them to do their job, and you focus on yours." He said as they parted ways. Dante caught Vergil's eye on the other side of the pitch and, after a moment of hesitation, made a gesture to invite him over. Dante leaned on the rail as the teams came out. He absently noticed the pitiful hostility, and even worse attempt at hiding said hostility, between the team captains.

"Look! There he is!" Hermione shouted as she caught sight of Harry. Dante, having noticed him a while ago, refrained from rolling his eyes. They were just human after all. As the others raised the banner they had made, Dante mentally chastised the players for the holes in their strategies. It wasn't long before Vergil appeared and rested a hand lightly on the railing beside Dante.

"Are you honestly befriending them?" He asked after a moment. Dante didn't answer at first.

"I know I can't, but they're persistent in befriending me." He said after a minute,"It will happen again, won't it?" He muttered. Vergil hummed in response, neither aware that Hagrid had heard every word.

"C'mon, no one will betray yeh. Not 'ere anyway." The half giant said as he shuffled beside them with Ron and Hermione. Neither twin spared him a glance. Dante gave a derisive chuckle.

"Treachery is everywhere pal. If you knew exactly what we are..." Dante let the message hang, even as Vergil gave a nod of agreement.

"Oh Tony, is that what you're so worried about? We won't betray you!" Hermione exclaimed. Dante kept his posistion on the railing, thus he noticed Harry. His broom seemed to be trying to throw him off as he clung for dear life. Dante tuned everyone out as he scanned the crowd for the source.

"Vergil. See anything?" He asked, cutting Ron off from something or other. Confused, the others looked at the pitch and gasped when they noticed. Hermione took Hagrid's binoculars and joined them in their search.

"Teacher's pitch. One's muttering, and another is not where he should be." Vergil reported as he removed his hand from the rail and turned to look at Dante. Dante looked at the indicated area and sure enough, Snape was muttering and Quereill was no where to be seen. Dante could smell him though: If he wasn't used to demonic scents, he'd have gagged every time he was in the defense against the dark arts classroom. No way that much garlic was for a vampire.

"Snape! Hold this." Hermione ordered as she gave Dante the, _ahem_ , borrowed binoculars to Dante and left. Dante tossed them back to Hagrid, who easily caught them, without even looking. Ron gave them a brief, awed, look before focusing on Harry. Fred and George were now circling under him ready to catch. Good plan. Dante gave a low whistle.

"That curse seems pretty dark to me. Wonder whose behind it." He said as he casually straightened up and crossed his arms. Ron gave him a look, but didn't press it for now.

"It would seem we may have a _quereill_ with _Querreill."_ Vergil said lowly in response, not wanting to deal with Ron's naive denial. Dante gave a small snicker, even as Snape's robe caught fire and Hermione accidentally bumped Querreill. Ron gave a a relieved sigh before turning on him when Harry's broom started cooperating again, coincidentally when she bumped the defense proffessor.

"How could you laugh at that? He could have died!" He accused harshly. Dante noticed Hagrid had shuffled off to the teacher's stands, likely after getting the benoculars back.

"Hermione had it under control." He said with a dsimissive wave before resuming his earlier posistion, as did Vergil. Ron fumed for a second before getting lost in the match again. That is until Malfoy showed up and Hermione returned. Predictably, an arguement broke out.

"Watch it Longbottom. Then again, if brains were money I suppose you'd be poorer than Weasely." Draco sneared. Vergil seemed to have had enough at that point.

"Then I suppose you'd be the poorest of all." He said silkily. The bystanders snickered, including Dante. Draco looked around mortified at that.

"Are you saying I'm dumb Black?!" He yelled before he lunged at Vergil. Dante shook his head as Vergil gave a look that could make Snape reconsider his actions.

"Worse than I thought." The older twin said as he countered with a high kick to Draco's face, leaving it there for a moment to see how he'd counter. When Draco fainted, Vergil lowered his foot. Giving a brief glance to Dante, Vergil seemed to be thinking about something, before a smirk graced his features.

"Jackpot." The older twin stated, causing Dante to grin. Ron and Hermione gave horrified expressions. Hermione because Vergil had knocked out a student, and Ron because their was a set of twins with a catchfrase. The Weasely made a mental note to never let his brothers know about it.

After the match ended, with Harry swollowing the snitch, the Griffindore quartet and Vergil were sitting in Hagrid's hut. Dante was chewing on a rock cake while the others drank tea. He'd admit it was okay, but he preferred more of a meaty flavore, for this kind of thing. Maybe have it slightly on the raw side. These were the thoughts he had while Ron and Hermione 'explained' what had happened on the pitch.

"Rubbish! Proffessor Snape is a Hogwarts teacher, he wouldn't try an' kill him." Hagrid exclaimed when they finished, apparently not have understood when it happened. Dante took another bite of his snack as Vergil decided to say something.

"Not necessarily. Teachers have been known to snap." He said vaguely.

"Exactly. Snape tried to kill Harry!" Ron exclaimed, thinking Vergil was on the same page as them. _Sorry, he's farther in the book pal._ Dante thought.

"Rubbish!" Hagrid repeated.

"But it was! I know a spell when I see one, and you've got to keep eye contact. Snape wasn't blinking!" Hermione protested. Vergil raised a brow, but it was Dante who spoke.

"And how many spells have you seen? It could have just as easily been a counter curse." He said flippantly, Hermione seemed unable to come up with a response.

"But it was him! He tried to get past that dog on Halloween!" Harry pressed, believing every word his friends said. Hagrid had a startled look on his face.

"How did you know about Fluffy?" He half giant asked suspiciously.

"Fluffy? That thing has a name?!" Ron asked in terror. Hagrid apparently missed the last bit as he responded.

"Of course he does. He's mine." He said as if it was obvious. Dante rolled his eyes.

"That _thing_ is what's called a Cerberus. That particular one however, is a highly diluted one." Dante put in, tired of their lack of knowledge on it.

"What do you mean 'diluted'?" Hermione asked. Dante finished his snack before replying.

"Cerberi usually come from the depths of hell. Some of them grow up to be powerful devils." He said nonchalantly, though he discreetly analyzed their reactions.

"I've actually read that one of them, an ice Cerberus, is one of the guardians of Temin-ni-gru." Vergil put in, though he didn't hide his analysis. Dante supposed the others would put it down to his personallity. Always analyzing things.

"Devils? Fluffly ain't no devil! If so he's a good one!" Hagrid said defensively.

"Hagrid! You've got to get that thing out of here!" Ron said in near panick. Harry, looking incredibly pale, nodded in agreement.

"Ronald! If Dumbledore let it in, it can obviously be controlled!" Hermione chastised.

"Fluffy's not an 'it'. He's my Cerberus!" Hagrid growled slightly.

"It's a bloody demon Hagrid! Tony, tell him how bad demons are!" Ron demanded. Dante was slightly offended, and slightly hurt, but he didn't show it or say anything on the matter.

"Cerberi don't travel in packs, and if you get them young enough it's possible to train them. A lot of wizards forget they're demons and use them as guard dogs, like what's going on here, because of that." He shrugged.

"B-but then-" Ron stuttered, only to be cut off by Vergil.

"Tell me, did you _demand_ my brother explain because we happened to survive a demon attack?" The older twin asked in a too calm tone. Ron gulped slightly as he sensed he had put himself in danger.

"For your information Weasely, we were attacked by Marionettes and Bloody Mari. Those are some of the demons that travel in packs." Vergil finished. A sharp eye could see blue sparks dancing along Vergil's hand as he tried to reign in his anger. Harry's included as he glanced at Vergil's hands. Dante thought about it, that night must have been a sore spot for Vergil to lose his cool like that.

"You forgot about the Sin Scissors that was there. Now that I think about it, those are all servants of a devil." Dante said, realizing too late that he gave a hint on who they were. Vergil gave a sharp look.

"I've been meaning to ask how you even survived that. I saw that...I saw you die." His voice cracked slightly before he changed his wording. Dante wondered if it was a strategy, or if he was honestly upset. He also didn't know how to answer that as he himself didn't know how he had survived. Much to his chargin, he had a brief flashback back to that night.

 _flashback_

 _An eight year old Dante jumped back from an attack from a Bloody Mari, feeling his back hit the wall._

 _"Dante!" His mother yelled in warning as a Marionette jumped at him. Dante leaned to the side to avoid the attack, causing it to impact the wall, severely weakening it. He needed to get clear of the buiding. Risking a glance around for an escape route, Dante saw his mother kick a demon in the face, at this distance he couldn't tell if it was a Marionette or a Bloody Mari, and vaulting herself a little closer to him before shooting a Marionette's arm off with her shotgun creating a way for him to escape if he could just get past the Bloody Mari in front of him. Dante dashed forward and jumped off the Bloddy Mari's head in order to bring Rebellion down in a helm splitter. Just as he was about to dash forward past the Marionette his mother had injured, another Bloody Mari charged at him. Dante ducked under the attack and was about to make it to his mother when the Bloody Mari collided into the wall, which immediately gave out. The last thing he saw was a Sin Scissors slash his mother's stomach before the building collapsed on him. Before he lost consciousness, he heard Vergil screaming his name._

 _end_

Dante recovered from his flashback and leaned back in the chair he was sitting on, unable to say anything at the moment. Vergil changed the subject as Hagrid offered him some tea.

"The match was intertaining." Vergil said. This was apparently the wrong thing as Ron fumed.

"Yeah, except for Snape trying to kill Harry!" He snapped. Vergil quirked an eyebrow.

"I was refering to the part where I put my cousin in his place." He said monotonously. Ron's ears tinged pink before something donned on him.

"Malfoy is your cousin?!" He asked, forgetting all about his embarassment. Had Dante not been out of it, he would have noticed Harry almost did a spit take and Hermione had a horrified expression again.

"What did you do to Malfoy?" Harry asked after he stopped coughing. Dante, who had come back to himself, answered cheekily.

"He kicked him." Harry blinked, not seeming to understand what the big deal was.

"He knocked him out!" Hermione shouted. Ron tried to hold back a chuckle.

"You should've seen it mate. Vergil kicked the git straight in the face! I've never seen someone kick so high!" The ginger grinned. Harry returned the grin, seeming like he wished he could've seen it.

"It's getten' late, yeh five should be returnin' to the castle." Hagrid said as he abruptly got up. Fang, who had been unusually quiet, whined slightly as Vergil passed by him, likely sensing an enraged demon.

* * *

The grounds soon became covered in snow, and the more mischievous residents of the castle, Dante included, took this to their advantage as they upped their pranks. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were common victims of the mischievous quartet and Dante, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, much to their chargin as Dante was getting them back for what they said at Hagrid's hut.

Currently, Dante was idly levitating a snowball as the other three planned a route to get to their next prank site. They typically kicked him out when it came to this faze, so he was adequately surprised when they approached him with a piece of parchment.

"Tony, you've been an excellent prankster-"

"Much more so than us,-"

"So we would like-

"To invite you-"

"To become the fourth-"

"New Marauder!" Fred and George spoke in their usual way.

"And not just any new Marauder, mate. We were wanting you to be the _leader_ of the new Marauders!" Lee added afterwards. Dante flicked his wand so that the snowball hit a passing student as he made a thoughtful noise.

"And what would a marauder be?" He asked after a long silence. Fred and George laughed.

"And thats why you were slated to be the leader. I really thought you were considering it there." George said as he slung an arm around Dante.

"As did I Fred. A master of trickery this one." Fred said as he swung his arm around Dante's other side, knowing from the look Dante gave that he hadn't fooled him.

"Look at this mate." George said as he held the parchment out in front of Dante.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Fred chanted as he tapped the parchment with his wand. Dante smirked as he read the opening message on the map.

"Legendary pranksters. We strive to be just like, no, to surpass them in mischief, and now we have the numbers." Lee said from his posistion crouched in front of them, them being sitting on a bench. Dante seriously thought about it this time. It could be amusing, he'd just have to be careful not to get in the same situation he was with Harry. Glancing at the trio's hopeful faces, Dante deliberately drew it out as he stroked his chin. Then he clapped his hands, startling them.

"All right, first order of business: Decide whose who." Dante said cheerfully. The grins on the threes' faces could've blinded even him.

"All right! We've done some research, and the leader was Prongs, so now that will be you!" Fred and George chorused. Dante thought about it for a moment. It just didn't sound right, it didn't suit him.

"Never mind that, we come up with new names. I think I'll be 'The Hunter'. Always liked the sound of that." He said after a moment. The older twins nodded eagerly.

"I get it. Can't surpass them if we use their names now can we?"

"I agree George, what shall we call ourselves then?"

"If Tony is 'The Hunter', then we should have something that should compliment that." George said thoughtfully. All four of them frowned in concentration, after a quick 'mischief managed' in case passerby came upon them of course.

"Military sounding ones should do it." Lee said, receiving sounds of agreement from everyone.

"Ah well, we don't have to get these immediately." Dante said as he activated the map again, but he blinked at the new message. Just after the introduction it said: _You have my blessing. -Prongs_

"Jackpot. Another message, it says 'You have my blessing - Prongs.'" He said aloud. At that, a disbelieving group crowded around the map.

"Wicked..." Fred and George breathed.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione for their part, were commonly seen in the library looking up more on Cerberi. After learning that Fluffy was one, they were trying to find reasons to convince Hagrid to get it out of the castle. Harry in particular was trying to find a way as he felt it could be traumatic for Tony to be so close to one of the things that killed his parents. Hermione was also trying to find information on Marionettes and Bloody Mari. Unfortunately for her, she kept getting the puppet, the drink, and the, admittedly dark, curse.

Harry was having little bit better luck as he was finding out about the different breeds of Cerberi and wizards uses for them, but not anything about them being demonic. He found it quite interesting to be honest. Apparently, the ministry of magic used a Cerberus to guard the unspeakables hidden offices. It seemed they were rather rare, and something to be reported, however as they were labeled an endangered species. Greek mythology also said the the god of death, Hades, used a Cerberus to guard the gate to the underworld. It was honestly convincing him that Cerberi weren't something to worry about as long as you didn't cross them.

A very reluctant Ron had been slated to research Temin-ni-gru, which Vergil had mentioned. He was having the worst luck of all as there was literally nothing even referring to it. It was like, whatever it was, didn't exist.

"Honestly Ronald, how hard could it be to find? Hogwarts has the largest selection in existence, if there is anything on it, it's here." Hermione had huffed when Ron put his 12th book away.

"Maybe if we had any idea what we're looking for, we would be able to find something!" An exahsperated Ron retorted.

"What about you Harry? Find anything?" The girl asked in a nicer way. Harry nodded.

"Did you know the last minister of magic had a Cerberus guarding his property? Apparently, they're an endangered species that the ministry wants to protect. I really think Tony and Vergil might have been mistaken." He said as he read over a story of a demigod, son of Poseidon sneaking past a Cerberus as if it was a regular dog.

"I don't think so Harry. They probably researched demons thoroughly after they were attacked, and with them being from the Black lineage, they'd have access to their family research." Hermione said softly as she remembered their situation.

"Maybe it's something that hasn't been released to the public. The blacks are the lead researchers in demons right?" Harry suggested. Hermione bit her lower lip, but didn't say anything as she continued to flip through the pages of her book. Harry also flipped through his book until he found something interesting. _The Legend of Sparda._

* * *

 _Omake_

James Potter was curious about a certain Tony Redgrave. That's all there was to it. Thus, it wasn't a surprise when he told Lily he was going to keep an eye on his brother's nephew. Maybe he could find out what happened to Eva. Lily had smiled and told him she'd tell him what he missed with Harry. Thus, James was watching Tony idly spin a snowball while his cohorts were plotting. He wondered why they didn't let him in. Just as he thought that, the boy's cohorts returned with a familiar piece of parchment in hand.

"Tony, you've been an excellent prankster-"

"Much more so than us-"

"So we would like-"

"To invite you-"

"To be the fourth-"

"New Marauder!"

"And not just any New Marauder mate. We want you to be the _leader_ of the New Marauders!" Lee Jordan said excitedly.

Fred and George Weasely said in faux grave voices. Tony was silent for a while, considering as he idly sent his snowball at a passerby. James found himself feeling anxious, remembering the mayhem he and his friends had caused on Hogwarts. He could see that the twins and their friend were feeling the same way.

"And what would a Marauder be?" Tony asked with a smirk. James blinked. Then laughed. Then blinked again. That was a prank?! Then he burst out laughing as he understood what had happened. Tony had stayed silent and let them prank themselves! Fred and George had similar reactions as they spoke.

"That's why you were slated to be the leader mate." George said as he slung an arm around Tony.

"I agree Fred. A master of trickery this one." George?...agreed as he slung an arm around Tony's other shoulder. The look Tony gave indicated that a trick he knew of had took place. WHICH WAS FRED AND WHICH WAS GEORGE?! These kids were going to surpass him and his friends if that was any indication.

"Look at this mate." The one on Tony's left said as he held out his old map.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." The one to the right said. Tony smirked when the map showed itself.

"Legendary pranksters. We strive to be just like, no, to surpass them. And now we have the numbers to do it." Lee said excitedly. Tony was silent again as he stroked his chin. James tried to not get anxious again, he honestly did, but he couldn't tale if Tony was letting them prank themselves again or not. Then the boy clapped.

"First order of business: Decide who's who." He grinned. The smiles on the other three's faces could have been blinding.

"All right! We did some research and the leader was Prongs, so now that will be you!" The twins chorused. Speaking of twins, what about Sirius' other nephew? James smiled when he heard them change the names. 'The Hunter', it sounded like targets wouldn't get away from him. With a flick of his ghostly wrist, James put a one time message on the map.

"I know you will surpass us." He muttered as Tony read the message aloud. The cheers he heard were like music to his ears. "It seems the Maraudes will live on." He said with a shake of his head. He better get back to Harry and Lily. As he glided through the wall, he couldn't help an amused chuckle at an extremely pale Filch running away from that area. He had never seen Mrs. Noris with her tail bushed out that much before, not even when he had put catnip in her food.

 **My longest chapter yet. I'll be taking suggestions for their aliases, but Dante will be the hunter.**


	7. Mission 7

**Mission 7**

 **Vote chapters left: Last One!**

 _ **Survive the curse of the holidays!**_

Not long after Dante agreed to become a Maurader, a time he had been silently dreading approached. Christmas, the anniversary of that day. For demons, Christmas was a ripe time to attack the human world as the humans tended to gather in crowds for the holidays, thus it wasn't a suprise that 50% percent of demon attacks happened at this time. Dante had been one such victim, and thus held a certain dislike for the cheery day.

Dante kept himself extra busy the closer it came to Christmas, not wanting to deal with the memories that came with it. He'd never got a chance to properly grieve, and if the demons had a say he wouldn't get that chance. As it drew closer to time to leave, Dante grew increasingly concerned. What if being here had made him too soft to survive outside? What about Vergil? He knew he needed to leave, to train to survive, but how had he been affected here? Could he survive? It was these thoughts that plagued Dante's mind when he signed up to leave for the holidays. Unfortuneately, as he signed up a familiar face appeared.

"Tony? Your leaving too?" Hermione asked in slight shock. Dante nodded and put his hands on his hips.

"Can't be protected by Hogwarts forever." He said simply. Hermione gave a light pout.

"But where will you go? Surely you don't intend to spend the holidays on the the street?!" She exclaimed. Dante remained silent for a moment, as that was exactly what he had planned. Sure he had Grimlaud Place now, but that would defeat the purpose. That and trash the place.

"Creatures of the underworld will always come after me. I can't go off getting soft." He said in a suprisingly serious tone. Hermione seemed to be caught off guard by it as she didn't say anything. Dante took her silence as an oppurtunity to leave.

Dante spent the next hour or so in his bed, noting with dull amusement that it was the first time he actually used it. He supposed he should try to sleep before the nightmares started, but he couldn't. His mind wouldn't let him even attempt it as he replayed what had happened. Maybe he could stay in that alley he had seen for a couple of days then go somewhere else, but where? No way in hell was he staying with Vergil as not only would them being together increase the likelyhood of attacks, but he doubted he could handle it. His twin would probably ask questions that Dante couldn't answer. With a light sigh, Dante closed his eyes, only to immidiately open them again when the events decided to show themselves again. Did Dante mention that he hated Christmas? Deciding that he wasn't going to rest or anything of the sort, Dante decided to polish Luce and Ombra, having already polished Ebony and Ivory. He needed to get back into a survivor's mindset, that is why at the first sign that he wasn't alone Dante instantly had a pistal trained on the door. It was a suprised set of Weasley twins that were on the business end.

"Hi Tony."

"We heard an interesting little rumor-"

"That you are leaving for the holidays!" They said cheerily. That was something Dante liked about them, they didn't do pity.

"Yeah. Got some things to check out." He said flippantly as he resumed poshing Umbra, which had previously been ready to shoot George's brain out. Fred and George didn't pry like Hermione had tried to do, earning more respect from Dante as they just grinned.

"Well, if you're not going to be here, we should give you your gift early." Fred said.

"Only the leader should hold this." George said as he gave Dante a familiar parchment. Dante smirked.

"Sweet! I'll make a plan while I'm out." He said as he eagerly took the map. As Dante turned around to get another material, he didn't notice that Fred's and George's smiles had become sad.

Unknown to Dante, majarity of the Griffindore house, head of house included, were gathered in the common room, discussing him. Every Griffindore had an anxious expression as they thought of the young Black's recent personallity change. Fred and George came down with grimm expressions.

"Was he ok?" McGonnagal asked worriedly. Fred shook his head sadly as George spoke.

"Nearly attacked us. Getting rather jumpy, he is." George said as he plopped down on the sofa, his twin following suit.

"Will he be ok?" Neville asked in clear worry over his classmate's condition. Ever since Tony had saved him from Filch the boy had been hoping that he could get Tony to let him in, just choosing a different approach from his other friends.

"Well, if he survived this long..." Dean Thomas started, but soon trailed off. Hermione bit her lip as Harry tried desperately to think of something.

"If he recieved the Black inheritence, he'll be better off now than before." Percy Weasely said, sounding more like he was trying to convince himself than them. McGonnagal frowned lightly, but didn't respond.

"...What if he got comfortable here?" A random student asked suddenly, causing the air to tense even more.

"Maybe that's why he's leaving." Hermione muttered softly, but it was heard all the same.

"What exactly was he doing in there?" Harry asked, almost afraid to hear. Everyone turned their attention to the Weasely twins.

"He was polishing those 'guns' of his it looked like." Fred said after a moment. That's when it really seemed to sink in with everyone. There was a high chance Tony Redgrave wasn't coming back to Hogwarts. For each of them, Tony was a different person. For some he was a protector, for others he was a troubled child, and some he was almost a friend. One thing that he had in common with them all though, was that he was an enigma.

As time passed, people learned not to startle Dante as he didn't take too kindly to that, almost lashing out on occaision. Soon, it was time for everyone to leave, most people being excited to do so as Dante found out. It wasn't long before he was on the muggle streets again, almost immidiately under attack. Three Sin Sythes decended on him as he was searching for a place to sleep, each hoping to finally kill the son of Sparda. Dante smirked slightly as he drew Rebellion: These guys were so _slow_. He could have some fun with this. Waiting for a full minute for them to decend was the hardest part as he then timed his attack perfectly so it would rebound off the offending sythe before jumping to avoid a horizontal slash from his left and hoping off the mask that kept the demon alive rather than destroying it. Hearing a disturbance in the wind, Dante leaned to the right to avoid another one by a few centiemeters before pulling Ivory and shooting the demon point blank in the face, effectively killing it. Two left. Easy.

"Huh, I remembered them being faster." He muttered as he finished them off. Time to find a place to sleep. Checking out the alley he had noticed, Dante was pleased to find that it had plenty of junk to cover his scent and a couple good hiding spots. He'd have to remember that, but he also wanted to check out his new house.

Making his way to his new house, and fighting a few thugs that were litterally just asking for it, Dante took a moment to take it in. It was pretty inconspicious from the outside, even had some wards that actually worked, though he'd have to do something about the other ones. To him those were making it a beacon as the strong defencive energy just screamed 'I'm hiding something important'. Aside from those, the house was pretty ordinary in appearance, looking exactly like the others with the exeption of a '12' written on the side marking it as, well twelve. So this was his mother's childhood home, huh?

Dante only stared a moment before he walked on in. While the outside was inconspicious, the inside was a different story as it was filled with dark items of all kinds. No wonder his mother was willing to accept a demon so completely. True to Kreacher's word, the place was livable, decorated in a way Dante highly approved of, despite no one living in it for years. It was also far larger on the inside than the outside as the entrance hall extended far farther than the outside of the building allowed with various sidedoors leading to other areas. All in all, Dante approved of the first floor with the eception of the colors of course. Green and silver were never for him, always having prefered red and black. A part of Dante suspected that that had something to do with his demonic energy being a reddish black color, but that was neither here nor there. Dante let out a whistle as he looked around, noticing the ominous energy in the cupboard. Can't have something attacking him in his own safe haven now can he? That's what Dante thought as he checked it out, finding the source to be a locket. Not quite what he expected, but oh well. Time to destroy it, Dante quickly grabbed Rebellion and hacked away at the locket. As the hellish blade came in contact with the locket, something unexpected happened. First, the locket flashed a dangerous green color, then Rebellion was sent flying and impaled the other wall, and third, Kreacher popped in with a paniced shriek.

"Master Tony can't destroy Master Regulus' locket!" The old house elf wailed. Dante regarded the miserable elf for a moment, then looked at the sword in the wall.

"And why not?" He asked in interest. Something a demon couldn't destroy?

"Because locket is a horacrux. Kreacher has been trying to destroy it for years on Master Regulus' last request! Kreacher has failed Master Regulus!" The elf wailed before slamming his head against the wall, rattling the house elf heads mounted on it.

"And a horacrux would be?" The half demon asked as he pulled out Ebony and Ivory, training them on the locket.

"A horacrux is one of the darkest items in existence. To create a horacrux, a wizard must commit an act of murder. The wizard's soul becomes torn, and can be placed in an object. In that instance, the wizard's soul becomes infinitely tied to earth until the object is destroyed." Dante frowned at that as the elf stopped punishing himself to explain, it sounded terrible.

"Where is the fun in that?" He asked as he put his guns away, figuring they wouldn't be any good against it. "How do I destroy it?"

"Kreacher doesn't know! Kreacher has tried everything, Kreacher can't destroy it!" The hous elf wailed as he grabbed a lamp and started repeated hitting his own head.. Dante frowned, but didn't say anything as he made his way back to the door.

"Keep at it." Was all he eventurally said as he left. There were some things that needed to be done, specifically demons to kill, so he couldn't stay here.

"Vergil! Wake up!" A younger Dante shouted at his twin. Why wasn't he getting up? It was their birthday! Hearing a light chuckle, Dante turned around to see his mother, Eva, in the doorway. Her golden hair was as beautiful as ever despite the early hour as she laughed in mirth at her younger son's excitement. Dante pouted slightly, but he couldn't stay mad at his mother. Vergil stirred and opened his eyes to smile at Eva, elicting another pout from Dante.

"You were up the whole time weren't you?!" The younger accused childishly as the older sat up.

"Yup." Vergil smirked, causing Eva to laugh louder and elicting smiles from the twins. They loved it when their mother was happy.

"Ok, time for breakeast you two." She said when she stopped laughing. Dante eagerly complied with his brother on his heals as they practically raced to the kitchen, an amused Eva behind them.

Dante woke up with a small smile, he missed those times. His mother would laugh at their less human antics and tell them stories about Sparda after they inevitably did _something_ to make things interesting. When said demon was there, he would give them some sword lessons, sometimes even have the twins tag up to spar with him while Eva watched and occasionally joined them, on the twins' side of course. Dante sighed when he remembered what the good dreams always lead up to. It had been the same every year - they'd inevitably go to the time _it_ happened.

There was no time to dwell on it however, as he jumped up, smoothly going into a frontflip as the dumpster that he had been hoping would cover his scent was sliced in two. Making a smooth landing, Dante drew Rebellion, hoping to attract as little attention as possible. The ground shook slightly as a blade dug out of it, blood pulsing to it's finger which was aimed right at the half demon before squirting out as a dangerous projectile. Dante leaned out of the way at the last second before charging in with a stinger, unfortuneately his blade bounced off the demon's shield, causing Dante to have to roll out of the way of the counterstrike. Dashing to left, Dante made to charge the demon before switching to dash to the right and throwing Rebellion in a round trip. As Rebellion did it's work, Dante kicked out the support for the overhang he was under, causing said part to fall on a scarecrow that had been trying to sneak up on him before Rebellion came back, having killed the blade. There was no time for rest however, as Dante jumped to the side to avoid a prjectile from a Fallen. Oh boy, Dante both loved to fight these and had a habit of being irritated by them as they loved to phase through walls and the floor, this being a small space Dante wouldn't have many oppurtunites to strike.

"Well, let's have some fun." Dante said as he put Rebellioin over his shoulder and pulled Ivory with his other hand.


	8. Mission 8

**Mission 8: Birds of a feather**

 _ **Reclaim a lost relationship**_

 **Wow. 50 followers. Just, wow. As for the votes, that has come to a close. By far the result was to keep them close, though there were one or two that I personally liked. *smirk***

Dante's holidays went by in a blur of blood and tears, by the time school came back he had slayed quite a few demons. Looks like his spars with Vergil had payed off, he'd have to thank the bastard. He did, however, receive _one_ gift that he'd always treasure as he was looking through his 'safehouse'. It was a picture. Where as Dante's picture was one that he had salvaged from the fire after waking up, this one was surprisingly well cared for, not a spec of dust on it in contrast to all the other ones. The picture consisted solely of Eva in her signature red jacket as she looked around in boredom before her face light up upon seeing Dante. Eva had almost jumped at the glass that separated them as she soundlessly called his name. The half demon had picked up the picture in awe of what he was seeing.

"Mistress Eva...Kreacher adored Mistress Eva above all others." The house elf had said upon noticing. Dante was unable to tear his gaze from the picture as he numbly sat down, taking in her kind, blue eyes that held a fierce fire in their depths and the deceptively gentle face framed by long, blonde hair.

"Your favorite?" He echoed breathlessly. Kreacher nodded enthusiastically.

"Yes. Mistress Eva was, as you say, completely insane. Yet her insanity was in a completely lovable way. All who met her loved her, especially her brothers. Kreacher remembers Master Sirius used to seek her out for comfort when he felt neglected or troubled, while Master Regulus would go to her for job advise. If only Master Regulus had listened to her and become an auror." The house elf said with loving tears in his big eyes as he too looked at the picture.

"What about her parents?" Dante asked quietly. Kreacher gave a wistful smile at the question.

"They loved her. Mistress Walburga was so proud when she started displaying interest in demonology. They dismissed her being a Gryffindor as being brave enough to study that field with such passion, unlike Master Sirius." Dante gave a small grin at the reverent way the elf was talking. Leave it to his mother to gain such respect.

"I'll keep this." He said as he carefully put the picture back down. Eva gave him an understanding smile when he forced himself to leave.

The holidays had been a little better after that. Whenever he woke from a nightmare or was over whelmed he'd seek out the picture as a form of comfort, much like Sirius had apparently done. With his mother's support, he was able to survive the holidays a little easier. The picture had become just as treasured as the amulet Dante always wore. Both irreplaceable mementos.

It wasn't long after that he returned to school. People seemed to be greatly releaved at his return for some reason, but he didn't pay much attention to that as he didn't feel killing intent. Besides, he was looking for someone specific. When Dante caught sight of a blue coat, he smirked and approached his brother, who seemed to be talking to a professor.

"-tolerate it anymore." He had been saying when Dante got in hearing range. McGonnagal, the professor he'd been talking to, pursed her lips into a thin line.

"The sorting hat put you in Slytherin. It's impossible to change now." She said sternly. Vergil did not seem pleased.

"They are rather insistent on provoking me. There will be consequences if I lose control." The older twin said with his infamous stare. It was quiet for a few seconds before-

"I'll talk to the headmaster." And she left. Dante smirked as he approached his twin, who was watching the deputy headmistress with an unreadable gaze.

"Nice coat." He said as if his brother hadn't just indirectly threatened an entire dorm. Vergil hardly reacted, simply turning his head to look back.

"Same to you." The older said in reply. Dante crossed his arms as there was a slight stare down. It was Dante that decided to break it.

"I've got more info on Mom's past." He said after a moment, peaking his twin's interest as he fully turned around.

"I'm listening." So Dante once more spoke of what he'd learned. Vergil listened with rapt attention as Dante spoke of their mother's reputation, occasionally quirking his lips when he heard certain parts as he had done last time.

"Somehow, I have no trouble believing this." The blue devil said afterwards. Dante chose to keep the picture to himself though. He knew it was selfish on his part, but really, how much did he talk to his twin nowadays?

It wasn't long after that he met up with his maybe-friends. Hermione had drug the other two as she searched for him. After that, things had quickly fell back into their usual routine. Dante was once more sleeping on the couch while others tried to goad him to open up. The weekly spars came back too, though Dante noticed a slight change in Vergil.

"You've got that transfer." He noted as he parried a strike from Yamato. Vergil nodded as he jumped back from Dante's counter-strike.

"Yes. I am now a Ravenclaw, and I must say it is far more enjoyable than Slytherin." Vergil said as he warped above Dante, causing the younger to dash to the left to evade. He was getting better at his air trick it seemed. Dante used his own air trick to warp behind Vergil and immediately go in with a million stab before attempting a high roller. Naturally, Vergil countered him by using a type two arial rave when he was sent in the air. The two broke apart for breath just as they heard footsteps approaching, causing them to quickly hide their blades.

"I smell blood." Dante muttered after a moment with no sign of anyone. Vergil gave the smallest frown in agreement before the two shared a look. Coming to a silent decision, the two moved as one to see what was going on.

Red and blue moved seamlessly through the forest as the twins easily honed in on the source of the, rather tasty smelling, blood. They swiftly weaved through some of the thicker trees and jumped through branches when the path became impossible to follow without cutting said limbs down, but the centuars wouldn't be happy if they did. The only reason the two hadn't been attacked on scent was because they were the sons of Sparda, and that only gave them a thin line.

Neither twin was quite prepared for what they saw.

Both were familiar with hellish creatures, having dealt with them on a daily bases and being some themselves, but they had next to no experience with divine creatures. Just such a being layed there, wounded and being stalked by a cloaked being. The majestic unicorn whined softly, it's ivory coat stained with a silverish blood from a large gash on it's side. Dante didn't think, he acted. Luckily for him, Vergil seemed to be in a similar state as both twins charged the creature that seemed ready to devour the divine beast.

Dante opened with a stinger that grazed the creatures side as it reacted quickly in charging to the side, Vergil following up with a few quick swipes of Yamato. The creature landed on all fours with a feral hiss before dodging to the side as Dante fired a single round from Ivory. Unfortunately for it, three phantom swords materialized above it before dropping gracefully on it's back, but as it was a wraith like creature, it fazed through the swords as if they were nothing and retreated. Dante could smell strong fear and anger from the creature - which was saying something as the garlic that cloaked it covered most scents.

Vergil sheathed Yamato with a flourish as Dante returned Rebellion to his back, still loosely gripping Ivory.

"I can't tell rather that was a human or a demon." Dante said lightly as Vergil gave him a brief glance.

"Whatever it was, it wasn't human. Though I don't think it was quite a demon either." The older twin said calmly. Dante gave an easy smile as he put Ivory away.

"Well it's gone for now, but it will probably be back. Very soon." He said as he turned around, just in time for the herd of centaurs to reveal themselves.

"You are correct, Son of Sparda." Said a female one that covered her top with her long hair as she stamped her hoof. Vergil turned to face them at this declaration as another centaur, one Dante recognized as Bane, spoke up.

"For devils, even half, to protect such a divine beast...I see now that I miss judged the both of you." He said with a nod as he gestured one of his men to check the unicorn's vitals.

"With the proper care it will survive, thanks to these two." The apparent medic said after a moment as the unicorn gazed at his eyes. The centaur seemed taken aback for a moment as he blinked in surprise, even as the unicorn neighed in reassurance.

"What does it say, Firenze?" Bane asked after a moment. Firenze seemed to be momentarily speechless as he got up and looked at the twins seriously.

"She wants us to guide these two to the Divinity Statue." He said softly, in a way Dante was sure a human couldn't hear.

"Divinity Statue?" Vergil echoed, looking as lost as Dante felt. _That_ was a rare occurance.

The centaurs led them deep into the forest, to an area where they could easily get lost without the right guidance, and sitting innocently in the middle of a clearing was a golden statue of a woman holding what looked like an hourglass. Dante looked around, noticing a plaque a little ways away reading: In the lost forest the power of the gods will guide you home. Vergil read over his shoulder before looking back at the centaurs, who just watched without a word. It was then that the red clad twin approached the golden statue, inspecting it closer.

"What is this?" He muttered as he reached for the statue. Just as his hand brushed the edge of it, a golden light emitted from the golden piece. It was reacting to his power?

A glance back showed Vergil had an almost paranoid hand on the hilt of Yamato, even as the light died down and the sand in the hourglass began moving.

"This, is a divinity statue. By trading the blood of demons, you can receive gifts from the gods." Bane said as he took a step forward, "It is time for you to leave, sons of Sparda." And with that, the whole herd took off.

Dante and Vergil shared a look before following a newly appeared orb of light out of the forest.

"'Blood of demons? Do you think he was talking about the crystallized orbs?" Dante asked quietly later, while the twins were walking down the hall towards their respective dorms. Seeing as Vergil was now a Ravenclaw they were able to walk a longer distance than before as Slytherin dormitories were in the dungeons, now they were both in a tower.

"Perhaps. That is the only thing I can think of."

"So we'll have to keep some of that on hand then. Well see ya bro." Dante waved his brother off when he spotted the corridor to Gryfindor tower. As soon as he entered the building, he was bombarded by a brown blur.

"TONY! You won't _believe_ what happened today. We found out what the dog's guarding! It's the sorcerer's stone! Can you believe it? Nickolas Flamel-" She was cut off by Tony holding a hand up as he tried to process what she had said. Usually, he could understand her rapid babbling just fine, but his mind had completely stopped up and his instincts reared at the mention of the 'sorcerer's stone'. Naturally he knew what that was, the first stone was made to bind demons to do as the alchemist pleased so his parents had made sure he and Vergil knew what they were. If one was here...that wouldn't be pretty.

"Not human, remember? It's best you don't tell me any more." He gritted out at Hermione's scandalized expression, quite sure that his eyes were glowing red at the moment as the girl gasped.

"I'm sorry, I forgot! Are you a dark creature or something because only those-" She cut herself off at Dante's light glare, apparently having forgotten how personal that question was. Great, now that he knew that it was a scorer's stone his instincts wouldn't shut up at him to either destroy the threat to himself or use it for his own gain. Fun.

"Why did you even tell me that? Surely you of all people realize the teachers want it to be kept secret." Dante asked after a moment to get himself under control. Hermione looked scandalized at the idea of outing the teachers for a moment.

"Because Tony, you're our friend." She replied anyway. Dante gave her a look, wondering what he had done to give her that impression. Maybe they were just trying to guilt trip him in to revealing his species.

Dante didn't pay it any more mind for the following days as he continued his routine, if the humans got themselves killed it wasn't his problem.

 **This chapter is a little forced, so just bare with me here.**


End file.
